(Rewrite) Seeking Freedom: An Ash Betrayed Fic
by Soragao3
Summary: Abandoned, and betrayed by the world, Ash Ketchum takes the name Don Satoshi and plans to destroy a corrupt Pokemon League. The upcoming Master's Tournament is home to the League's most sinister plan yet, and Ash is the only one with the guts to stop it. But with a broken heart, can he do it? (Ash x an angry and jealous harem). Chapter 10 up.
1. Ashes in the Wind

**Seeking Freedom: 1: Criminal**

 **Aaand we're ready for take-off. Welcome back to Seeking Freedom. I'm hoping to make the most famous 'Ash Betrayed' Story here, and to do so, I need readers and reviewers to support me and my writing.**

 **Disclaimer: Do I look like I own Pokemon? No. I'm just an addict to the series...**

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Rooted deep into the criminal underworld, Ash Ketchum became an apostle of hope to Pokemon across the world.

There were many Pokemon indebted to him: they owed him their very lives, their very existence, and everything they stood for, because it was Ash Ketchum and his Pokemon who had given them this new hope.

Ash Ketchum- a man forced into his own primitive exile.

By the vicious judgement of the world above, Ash Ketchum was abandoned by those he held dear to him. It was a turbulent nightmare that only got worse and worse.

Everything started when he returned home from one day from his long Pokemon journey in Kalos, having lost to his rival Sawyer in the final round of the competition.

His friends slandered him and his name, mocking him for never reaching the same level as them. May Maple and Dawn Berlitz became Top Coordinators in their second years of contests, Misty had made the Kanto Elite Four, Iris had become Oppelucid City's Gym Leader, and Serena made the title of Kalos Queen.

'We just don't want to be seen with you, because we've hit the big time,' Serena told him one day. He felt his heart break as his own friends told him these things.

Cilan, the Striaton City Gym Leader, thought that Ash was a weak battler with no real strategies or 'recipes' that made him stand out. Dawn spat in the face of their friendship by globally announcing that she thought he was a loser.

Some friends. Ash was disgusted that they renounced his friendship, but he was also torn apart by the fact that they would do something like that.

Ash began to have doubts about his career as a trainer. He wanted to see if he was really worthy of the title 'Pride of Pallet Town'.

He challenged the Indigo League again, and reached the finals, where he met Damien Michaels, the man who had abandoned his Charizard as a Charmander all those years ago.

To his surprise, all of his friends knew Damien: he was a big, famous trainer. A very popular man. His friends had all met him before, and were now _rooting_ for him to win.

Ash was hurt gravely by this, so much so that it weakened him for an already one-sided battle.

Ash realised how vastly powerful Damien's Pokemon were. Ash brought his six strongest Pokemon, but even they had the floor wiped with them: Pikachu, Sceptile, Feraligatr, Staraptor, Noivern, and Charizard.

Ash lost six to none.

Damien laughed at him throughout the match, demeaning him, breaking him down, and hurting his feelings. He laughed when the broken Ash sent out his last Pokemon. Charizard.

What disgusted him was how little Damien cared about his Pokemon. He ordered high-power recoil moves that would surely hurt them just so he could make a fool out of Ash.

He completely thrashed Ash: all six of his Pokemon were hospitalised. All of Charizard's limbs were shattered. Damien laughed at Charizard, saying he was still weak as ever. Feraligatr's entire jawline was smashed. Noivern was almost frozen to death.

The face of his broken Pikachu made him cry, seeing the steely determination Sceptile clung onto was crushing, and witnessing Staraptor's body slumped over in pure defeat made him lose his will to fight again.

He was shocked to get a message from the Pokemon League telling him that his Pokemon Trainer's license might be suspended for pushing his Pokemon too hard. It made no sense to him, and he couldn't see why the League would say such a thing.

Ash gave up his trainer's license that day. He forfeited Pokemon training and opted to just live a quiet life until he could figure out what to do. He saw his Pokemon, from time-to-time, and the ones who were in the battle were his most trusted allies as well. He was allowed to keep those six with him. Using that loophole became the basis of how he ended up becoming a mastermind.

Two months later there was an assault on Professor Oak's lab and Ash was blamed for it.

The Pokemon League took an interest in the situation. Damien, the current Kanto Champion, had gotten himself involved with it and it became a globally discussed topic.

The League sent for lawyers and detectives to make sure Ash was sent to court. The papers started printing biased stories against Ash. People across the globe made Ash feel ashamed.

Ash's mother didn't know what to believe anymore and was in a state of shock for a long time, and all of Ash's friends were against him. Whilst waiting for the hearing, he grew thin and pale. He became sickly and frightened. His eyes lost all their past lustre, now a dull amber.

It was after a second hearing was announced by the courts when, his old friend Brock brushed past him one day and handed him a discreet letter.

The letter was the first trace of hope he had seen in a long time.

'Dear Ash, we are all truly sorry for what happened to you. Know that we had no part in this and although we can't do anything to help you, if we could we'd do it in a heartbeat, we can still tell you what is really happening. Sincerely, your loving friend Brock.' The first paragraph of the letter said.

'This whole trial is set up for your arrest, and so was the incident that got you here, by the guys up at the Pokemon League Association. I don't know what they want but it sounds like they want you out of the picture. You need to keep whatever Pokemon you have left somewhere safe, where they won't be found, and collect them when it is safe to do so. You'll know when that time is, I have that much faith in you, my son.' Ash gasped. It was his father's hand writing. He had made the title of Kanto Champion before, within Ash's lifetime, and now he was saying the Pokemon League had framed him?

They had also suspended his license after his match with Damien. Now he saw there was something up.

'Never give up Ash! Keep fighting!- Max.'

Ash smiled as he saw the little boy's writing.

It filled his heart, which had been bleeding hope.

The next lines read, 'Don't get arrested yet, you owe me a rematch. Paul.'

'Make it out of this alive and I can get you a job in the Battle Frontier. Scott.'

He laughed a little bit as well. He didn't know Scott was serious about giving him that job. Ash knew that if all went well, he could become a Frontier Brain.

Attached to the letter were his six Pokemon that had been in the hospital. After a few months of resting, they had finally come home.

Ash followed the advice on the letter carefully. He hid the six Pokemon in Viridian Forest with his old Pidgeot who he had seen over the years, and went back for the others at the lab.

What happened was another betrayal. But this time it didn't make him sad or want to cry. It made him furious.

He saw all of his old Pokemon at the ranch. Some of them were tied up, like Meganium and Infernape, whilst others looked very smugly at each other. Very few of them looked guilty about what happened. He looked at them for a minute before seeing Professor Oak's face again, hardened with contempt. Gary was with him.

'What do you want?' Gary asked him contemptuously. Ash was taken aback by this. His old friend spoke to him with such malice.

'Don't you know how much damage you've done already? You're not allowed to step foot in this lab!' Professor Oak snapped at him.

'I'm... I'm here for my Pokemon. I know I'm not allowed here but it's okay, just give them to me over the fence.'

Some of the Pokemon in the binds heard and saw Ash and started cheering. They tried charging towards him, trying to break the binds. He saw Tracey near the lab's tattered entrance, eyeing him maliciously, tighten their binds with one hand.

'Sorry, Ashy-Boy, but these Pokemon don't belong to you anymore. You're a criminal. They've been distributed to us because they don't trust you anymore. You don't have a license, so these Pokemon are wild. The Pokemon League is putting a high price on some of them.' He said this, gesturing back to his Infernape, struggling.

Ash's face became clouded. Gary couldn't see his expression. He didn't want to know what Ash was feeling.

'And besides, Pikachu's not even here, he's already been taken. By Brock.'

Something clicked in Ash's head.

' _So that's how Brock got my Pokemon...'_ He thought quietly. He looked on sadly, at the ranch, at the Pokemon who still cared for him. Donphan and Meganium were crying. Infernape looked murderous, and Snorlax looked defeated.

Guilt filled Ash's heart.

'Professor, you can't keep _those_ Pokemon here, they want to leave as well!' Ash explained, leaning over the fence. He roared at his childhood friend: at the filthy traitor.

Gary punched him so hard that he fell on the ground. His hat fell off of his head and onto the dirt road. Blood fell from his cheek. The Pokemon who betrayed him came up to the fence and glared at him.

'These are OUR Pokemon, Ketchum! Get lost, you loser! We can do what we want with them. Well, What're you waiting for, huh? Want me to call the police?' Ash looked up with tears in his eyes. And then he ran away. From all his Pokemon.

He didn't want to be a Master anymore. The Pokemon League had betrayed him. He didn't want to be a Champion anymore. He was a thirteen year old boy who had saved the world so many times, and yet here he was, framed for a severe crime?

He thought about it: he wanted revenge. But that was wrong. He shook his head. Heroes didn't chase revenge, as his father had always said.

So what to do then? He didn't want to go to prison. He had no friends who could look after him. He was brooding deeply over where to go.

He thought for a minute: how come the Pokemon League allowed Damien to treat his Pokemon that way in the match and still end up suspending _him_? Ash thought it was unfair.

But lots of things were unfair. The constant Team Rocket attacks were unfair. The fact that Pokemon poachers hurt Pokemon was unfair.

Having thought about it, Ash came to a question: why? Why did these bad things happen, and why did he get punished for something he didn't do.

Where did those organisations like Team Galactic get money from? How did Team Rocket pay for their schemes? After all, nobody else constructed gargantuan robots that must have cost millions.

The Pokemon League supported a man who promoted the abuse of Pokemon.

Ash slowed his pace down to a crawl, he was deep in thought.

He realised. He made a fist. He growled. He roared. He punched the dirt in fury.

' _It was the League_!' He thought in realisation. In fury.

The League he had so dearly admired and followed, the League that he thought loved and cared for their world, his great role model, collapsed in front of him as he realised who the greatest villains in the Pokemon World were.

Then he grinned. So long as he could prove it, he could justify getting his revenge on them.

He thought about his friends, and cool anger came over him. Not sorrow.

His smile became a sharp smirk. His eyes glinted with conviction and hatred of people. He had become a new person. The scar Gary had given him became the mark of this new person. A person who was capable of cold, malicious acts.

He went back for his Pokemon. He saw his Pikachu, fully recovered, and once again the duo was back. Ash needed to change his general appearance, since nobody could no Ash still had Pokemon with him. With Pidgeot helping them, he took off and set out on a new adventure. An adventure unlike any other.

And on this adventure, he decided he would prove himself to the world. He would prove his innocence by taking down all the criminal organisations that plagued millions, and if the League had a damn thing to say about it, then he would be ready for revenge.

All under a new name. Ashura Satoshi Ketchum, was now Don Satoshi.

Chapter 2- Don Satoshi

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 **Well. First chapter of the rewrite is DONE!**

 **Let me tell you, this rewrite is better than the original by a bajillion times! Although it might look the same, the plot is different this time. Things have changed this time.**

 **Next chapter will be slow at FIRST but will be very exciting by the end. You'll meet my favourite character in the entire Pokemon series. En. Joy.**

 **I don't like having to stress this, but please remember to review. I started this rewrite because I was worried people thought it was bad. I really do enjoy criticism from my readers and to be a good writer I need to know what you guys like.**


	2. Ash VS Silver: Tournament rising

**Seeking Freedom: 2: Don Satoshi.**

 **This is Chapter 2 everyone! Here, we get a taste of the battling this story has to offer. Hope you enjoy.**

 **Disclaimer:**

 **Do I look like I own Pokemon? No! I'm just an addict to the series...**

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Ash Ketchum was a hated man. Wherever he went, food was scarcely fed to him, since no chef wanted to feed an enemy of Damien, an enemy of the Pokemon League. That made life hard, especially with all the hungry mouths he carried with him.

But Don Satoshi was someone else. He wore a black coat and a blank grey shirt, and a pair of blue jeans. His footwear was a pair of brown leather boots that went up to his ankles. They were a nice fit, and they were very springy: springiness was important.

His hair was an unruly mess of spiky black, as it always was, with a light brown cowboy's hat on it.

He took a liking to the hat one day when he visited a ranch owner who had a habit of abusing his Miltank so that they might produce more milk. That hat was on the man's head one minute, and the in the next few, his own rectum was on his head whilst Ash taught him a stern lesson about abusing Pokemon.

As for Ash's own Pokemon, he could treat them well thanks to Don Satoshi's own professions.

He didn't work for money, he worked for favours. Money was how people of the upper world did their dealings; the upper world from which he was banished.

His job was simply to help Pokemon in need and earn their favour, so that they trusted him. He had no interest in capturing them, although due to their gratitude he had a few more Pokeballs in his bag now. He wanted food from them, since shop owners never fed them.

His old Pidgeot decided not to travel with him. Pidgeot did not have a Pokeball. Pidgeot was how the Pokemon he helped remembered his favours.

The abnormally large flocks of Pidgey and Spearow in the Route 1 woods of Kanto became too huge for Pidgeot to feed for, so he sent them out to the different places Ash had been as messengers. Pokemon rendered homeless due to the cruelty of the Pokemon League were directed to sanctuary in safely guarded places. They all did as they pleased, so long as they remembered their favour to Don Satoshi.

It was like a private army. But Ash tried not to ask them of favours: just that they remembered their saviour and accept his gifts. Pidgeot was Ash's left-hand Pokemon.

The Pokemon Ash did favours for became his friends. He never forgot any of them, from the weak Rattata to the ferocious Salamence. And he treated them all equally, strong or weak.

The Pokemon Ash chose to carry on hand were frightening however: they weren't the sort of Pokemon one would find in the wild, or even amongst their own species.

His training sessions were intense for all of them, although they were all differently levelled.

Many trainers strived to reach the level of power Ash's Pokemon had. They were all around level sixty, with two exceptions. That was Champion level.

But most trainers with that level of power tended to have a lot more Pokemon. For the standards any orthodox trainer would refer him to, he had very few Pokemon. Sinnoh Champion Cynthia Shirona had sixty, and Kanto Champion Damien had eighty. But nobody ever spoke Damien's name to Ash's ears. He was just as strong as his Pokemon. His temper was short lived as well.

The first of his Pokemon was a Pikachu, which didn't look that different from any other Pikachu. This one was slightly smaller, slimmer, and had a tender gaze in its eyes though. Ash's best friend, and his starter Pokemon. Even after all the years, Pikachu was his best Pokemon. None of the others could beat him in a foot race, except for Ash, being the fastest of the group. Pikachu was Ash's right hand.

The second was a lot more demanding of attention: a stark contrast between number one and two.

One was small and furry and cute, as well as charming, but Ash's second most powerful Pokemon stood at a staggering nine feet, with scales that had gone from orange to red over years of intense training. It looked tough, calloused scales and large wings made for an imposing sight.

The cream underside made this Pokemon look more comforting. A snarling, vicious jaw stood upon a long slender neck, with leering eyes that embodied pure power. At the end of its red and cream tail was a large flame blazing skywards, no matter where the tail was facing. Of course, unless Charizard willed it, the flame couldn't hurt anyone. If Pikachu was the right hand, Charizard was Ash's right shoulder. His muscles.

The third most powerful was easily the collected Sceptile. If Charizard was the shoulder, Pikachu was the hand, Sceptile would just fit on the left with Pidgeot. He was Ash's _left_ shoulder, doing things in his own independent fashion, detached from the group, yet eternally loyal and faithful. He wasn't as strong as Charizard, not as fast as Pikachu, but he was a bit of both, along with his tactical prowess. The green lizard's bulbs were in prime health, representing his own prime health. He also had the best eyesight, stamina, accuracy and evasion in the group.

Tied for fourth was Lucario and Staraptor.

As a Riolu, Lucario knew Ash by his old name. The same Riolu that knew the power of the Aura Sphere as a youth was now, without a question, the most knowledgeable of them all.

Lucario and Ash met via the malicious Pokemon Hunter J, who had attempted to capture Riolu again and sell the young Pokemon for a huge profit. Don Satoshi, once again on his warpath against criminal activity, ended up saving Riolu.

At the end of the affair, Hunter J escaped narrowly with almost nothing left.

Whilst Don Satoshi walked into the sunset, all of the Pokemon giving their thanks to him, Riolu stood lost. He didn't know what to do now.

Riolu, at the end of the day came to Ash and grovelled at his feet to let him accept him into his team. Ash stopped and considered the offer.

'...Very well.' He said. His cold exterior scared Riolu. Was this the same man he had met all those years ago?

He turned around and smiled at Riolu.

'Welcome to our family.' And those thoughts were put to rest.

Staraptor hadn't changed much. He had grown a lot bigger; so much so, that Ash could now ride on his back like he often did with Charizard.

Staraptor was a strong warrior. Staraptor was a brilliant fighter: he was fast; harsh; unforgiving; and had room for warmheartedness. Like everyone in their family, Staraptor had a big heart, but his was warmer than the others. When Noivern had joined them, much younger and weaker than the others, Staraptor taught him each and everything about flying. And he mastered the Brave Bird attack under Staraptor's tutelage.

Ash was very fond of the playful Feraligatr. Whereas the others were cold-hearted towards the world, Feraligatr was soft-hearted and playful. He brought smiles to everyone on the team's faces.

Since he was not as experienced as the others, Feraligatr had worked and worked to make up for this: nights and nights of practice gave him the best reflexes on the team, better than Pikachu. His defences were tough, and his attacks hit like a truck. Nobody wanted to be hit by his Ice Punches.

Noivern had found his own unique fighting style, in being able to fake out anyone with their attacks and fly away like lightning. His movement was controlled: everything was controlled, unlike the loose-cannon strategies of Staraptor. He was still younger than the others, but he could just as easily hold his own with them.

Sylveon was always with Ash, an expert fighter in her own right. The youngest Eevee Brother, Mikey, had taken to breeding Eevee pairs together, and selling them to good-hearted trainers for a good price.

But his brothers took the Eevee he sold and put them up to the high-paying tenants in black markets to make more money.

That was one of the few times Don Satoshi revealed who he was to anyone. Mikey now knew that the same boy that helped save his Eevee that day was now a very great man, honest in nature, and in thanks for stopping his brothers making money of off his Eevee, he gave him one of the Eevee, who later evolved into Sylveon.

What he had done was give him some of his own land near a river, guarded by a Gyarados who he had done favours for. He could do his business here without any fear of his brothers, who were taught a good lesson about the black market when their own Evolutionary Stones had been pilfered from their homes and given to various Pokemon across the world, making them impossible to find.

Lastly, there was Larvesta and Larvitar, two very powerful Pokemon who insisted on travelling with Ash. Having judged their potential, Ash decided that he would keep these two Pokemon with him. Larvitar, from Mount Silver, had heard about Don Satoshi, and when his mother passed away from old age, he wished to join him.

He was so shocked to see it was Ash, the first human he had ever met, and then Larvitar became part of Ash's team. It wasn't a question for the two friends. They quickly became inseparable.

Larvesta, on the other hand, was a mystery. Lucario found her egg in a Team Magma base they had raided, and on their computer terminal, it was listed that this was a Larvesta egg.

Ash decided to take Larvesta with them, seeing as there wasn't much else for the egg to do. And Larvesta was born, an incredibly clever young Bug Pokemon. She was learning to fight on par with everyone else in the team. She remembered, herself, Riolu, and Larvitar sitting together as youths under Ash's eyes. All the fun times they had were unique to them.

Unfortunately, this meant extra training for them, since neither of them were experienced battlers.

Ash learned to live with his Pokemon. To train with them, and hunt like them when food was scarce. He battled against them, learning to dodge and block different attacks. Learning to strike and how to battle.

And those skills were soon to be put to the test.

That night, he was on the road. He was going to Hoenn from Johto, a long journey.

He would need to firstly go to New Bark Town and swim out to the Wailmer patch in the sea.

Many Wailord were poached for their skins that could be used as floats, driving the species to suffer endangerement. Ash heard about this and knew the law wouldn't help.

Large operations like this took a while. He went into Kanto, back into Route 1, near his home. But without sparing a glance to his hometown, he ordered Pidgeot to rally up a fraction of their friends and send them on on a crusade for every Wailord poacher on the planet. In each boat, a message was left by Ash himself.

'Anyone who dares poach any Pokemon like this again will suffer a fate ten times worse. If you cannot live in harmony with this race, we will rip you apart again and again. The Wailord will give you their skin if they so please. I will personally see to this.'

The police found the message and broadcasted images of what had happened to the poachers in their ships and there was a global outcry of outrage against Wailord hunting.

The next hunter had his ship personally set alight and destroyed by Don Satoshi's entire team. This savagery was unheard of.

And so the Wailord were in his favour. Baby Wailmer lived in the waters near the coasts, and would swim out to where the Wailord lived, in the deep oceans.

So that was how Ash got from one region to the other without needing the people's help. The Wailord all had stunning stories to tell, about the oceans, about the world.

Ash learned something incredible about them: when a Wailord dies, their corpses were carried to the land by the bay. So people did get Wailord skins, albeit not often.

On the road to New Bark Town, he was passing through the woods outside of Cherrygrove City when he realised he was being followed.

Charizard was hulking by his side. The red dragon was on the lookout for anything strange, but he hadn't noticed someone was following them yet.

He knew Staraptor was in the sky as well... Above them...

Staraptor let out a shrill screech that alerted Ash to what was happening.

'STARAPTOR!' He roared. He just about made out the Predator Pokemon's body falling out of the air, by the starry backdrop of the night sky. Charizard roared and took off, but something knocked him back into the dirt. He lay collapsed for a moment, which worried Ash.

Ash stopped running and felt his Pokemon's pulse. Just a minor thing.

Charizard got to his feet, and the assailant was in front of them.

A Feraligatr. Not theirs, but someone else's. This one was somehow bigger, more muscular, than the one Ash had. It was too dark to make make anything else out.

Ash was excreting an incredible aura of anger at whoever was following them for attacking Staraptor, but his anger was swept away by the sheer fury that was coming off of Feraligatr's trainer.

His hair was a glossy red, his eyes were a gleaming silver. He had a pair of black jeans and a black coat with a red rim around it.

Whoever this man was, he was an expert. Knocking Staraptor out was a move of pure genius, although Staraptor had been too quick for him and Ash had been alerted to his presence.

'Charizard, light things up. I don't want to fight him in the dark.' Ash whispered to the Flame Pokemon.

Charizard's tail roared with fury and as a mass of embers erupted from his tail, the area lit up completely. Ash could now see that the Feraligatr was covered in scars from battle. This must have been his starter Pokemon.

'Greetings,' The boy said.

Judging by the light, was a bit older-looking than Ash. Around a year, he guessed. That would make him seventeen. He could now see that the red-rimmed coat was something he had seen before. A Team Rocket commander's uniform. Each commander had a one in a different colour.

'Clever move, lighting the field up. You have brains. You're definitely the one I need.' He said curtly.

The massive Feraligatr stood in front of him.

'Do you know who I am?' His voice was icy. He sounded unstable. Like a madman.

Ash lifted his hat and tossed it to the ground. He left his bag on his person, just in case he needed it for his Pokemon.

He also kept a gun there. But this man was smart. He would be too quick to fall for a trick like that.

'Can't say I do. Do you know me?.' Charizard adopted a fighting stance.

Feraligatr and Charizard met dead centre. Charizard looked like he was being overpowered by the vicious Big Jaw Pokemon, but wouldn't give in.

'Charizard, use Flamethrower to get the edge!' He commanded. He was in tactician mode. Ready for anything.

He was ready for the knife that the red head swung at him.

'My name is Silver,' He said, swiping at Ash again.

'Silver Ketchum. And I do know you, Ash Ketchum.'

Ash didn't falter. He absorbed that information.

' _Another Ketchum_?' He thought.

' _This guy knows who I am...'_

He dodged another attack. There would be time for this later.

Silver aimed for his right shoulder, but Ash sidestepped the attack and punched him in the face. Twice.

Silver stepped back and roundhouse kicked him. Ash head-butted him in the knee and he buckled back. Ash then collapsed onto him, and seized his arms and legs.

Charizard and Feraligatr were fighting very ferociously, but Feraligatr saw Silver on the floor and seemed to draw even more power from some mysterious source.

Feraligatr roared and used Return to throw Charizard into the dirt and ram into Ash's body. He was unprepared for the bite that dislocated his left shoulder and had him roaring in pain.

He could see past his own blood that his Pokemon had come out of his bag. And so had some others: Silver's Pokemon, equally as menacing appeared.

Sceptile, immediately grasping the situation, pushed Feraligatr away and took Ash into the treetops to hide him. Ash watched all hell break loose as Feraligatr escaped and took Silver to a safe spot before joining and waging war on his Pokemon. He knew he couldn't do anything right now, not even yell orders lest he be murdered, so he watched the battle. His team was dividing the load of the battle into two-on-ones, because everyone could see these were tough opponents.

Lucario and Charizard were looking to take down a tough looking Magnezone, making sure they were confining it's dangerous electrical attacks to a small area.

Noivern and Sylveon were on the case of the Gengar that was giving Lucario trouble. They couldn't let the Shadow Pokemon out of sight, especially not at night time, when it would be impossible to find.

Pikachu was in a one on one fight against Silver's Weavile. The thing was cunning, fast, sharp witted. He hated the smirk Weavile wore whenever he got a hit in.

Weavile went in for a Poison Jab when Pikachu surprised it with a full-force power Iron Tail. It then followed up with Thunderbolt.

Larvesta, Larvitar, Sceptile, and now Pikachu looked to be taking down Silver's immensely fast and powerful Crobat and Feraligatr. These two were the strongest fighters, the deadliest vipers. They couldn't let them distract Charizard or Sylveon. Larvitar had dug pitfalls around the field to stop Feraligatr from leaving.

Magnezone managed to take down Charizard with a Zap Cannon, and was about to unleash a massive Thunder Wave when Lucario suddenly slashed at it with Bone Rush, downing the Electric type.

Then Noivern unleashed its full power Draco Meteor attack and knocked everyone back except for Sylveon. In the confusion, Gengar fainted leaving just Feraligatr. Crobat had disappeared somewhere, which was worrying for them.

The behemoth Feraligatr had just about enough. A roar summoned a titanic wave that nearly hit Ash. Larvesta and Larvitar barely managed to avoid the attack thanks to Ash's own Feraligatr shielding them.

Feraligatr stayed in his rampage, using Outrage to beat back everyone that came close. Sylveon stepped in to avoid the Outrage and used Dazzling Gleam to blind Feraligatr.

But when the attack faded, a Hydro Cannon attack had more than decimated half of the team.

'Larvesta!' Ash called. Feraligatr looked up vengefully.

'Wild Charge!' The Bug type didn't hesitate. She raced forwards, coated in electricity, ready to charge into Feraligatr, who leaped up in response.

Suddenly, in a feat of awe and resilience, Staraptor, covered in bruises, flew in with his Aerial Ace and pushed Feraligatr back down, into the attack.

The battle was over.

In the air, red beams of light retracted the Pokemon as Silver could be seen dangling from Crobat's wings. Nobody had the strength to go after him, as he flew away defeated.

' _Well_ , _that went worse than I had initially planned... At least it's over now.'_

Ash thought.

Staraptor descended on the branch next to him, and gave him a piece of paper, some kind of letter.

'What's this?' He asked. His eye was swollen from when Feraligatr had gone beserk.

Staraptor told him, in the Pokemon language that he could now understand, that this letter was important to him. He said that this paper was what Silver had used to gag Staraptor after he shot the bird down.

It was dark, but he could read it in the moonlight: fumbling around in his pockets, he brought out a flashlight that Silver managed not to destroy.

'To our esteemed Pokemon trainer receiving this message, this is a formal invitation to take part in the Semi-Decennial Pokemon Master's Tournament.

To register for this tournament, simply hand your invite in at the tournament admission lobby between November 25th and December 1st. The Tournament is to be held in Kalos' Royal's Palace Stadium.

For competing, the cash prize increases per round. For competing, all battlers receive a cash prize of $1,000. This amount is multiplied by four each round you advance. The victor will receive a large sum of $1024000, and many other rewards come with simply entering the tournament, as well as the title of First Rank Pokemon Master.'

We hope you accept our invitation. Hotels are not prebooked. For more information, please refer to the PLA Website.

Sincerely, the Pokemon League Association.'

Ash thought for a minute.

Now was his chance at redemption.

Chapter 3- Damien Michaels.

* * *

 **That took a long time to write, at least three hours. A lot of work *^_^.**

 **Anyway, please remember to review and if you enjoy the story, follow it, favourite it, and if I stop producing updates without a good reason, PM me. See you then.**

 **Also, one reviewer asked about an OC a while back? Steve Santos will indeed be in this story, but he will be the only OC I accept. I'm sorry but I have this story planned out.**

 **Till then, see you guys!**


	3. The traitors

**Seeking Freedom: 3: The League**

 **Phew! Finally done! This took waaaay too long!**

 **This chapter is a bit of backstory, and ends in a bit of foreshadowing. It's the longest chapter yet.**

 **Thank you everyone who supports this story. It truly does mean a lot to me. Expect more chapters. Also, please don't forget to review!**

* * *

There was once a head full of hair on Giovanni Sakaki's head **.**

He was a handsome young man: the wickedness in his eyes had not yet formed. He had not yet learned to hate. He respected and wanted to love all Pokemon. He was a brilliant trainer, commanding respect from all Pokemon he battled with. He was going to go far. But as time passed, he saw the darkness in the world. When his father, a sickly hunchback who worked as a poorly paid Pokemon hunter, came home one day, the young Team Rocket boss saw a scene that often took place in the Sakaki home. Only much more violent.

His mother, forced to marry his father due to ties and binds of family, was timid and reserved. She had a timid appearance, but she had many an affair. Sometimes, after coming back from training his only Pokémon, he would spend his nights alone. When his had learned, e went mad. He took his hunting tools into the wild after yelling at her, and cut ties with everyone in his life, till nobody was left for him. He took his money with him, leaving them all penniless.

His mother, left with no money, wanted to spare him what horrors would await her in life. She left him in a rough orphanage where he grew up as a sour kid.

He got into fights against petty criminals, thinking he was a hero, and was careless with his girlfriends. But like his father, the girls he had were unfaithful. He experienced sorrow. He experienced pain. And that heightened his hatred, for people. A world where criminal power was of utmost importance was the sort of world he knew he could take

When he got arrested one day for beating up a poacher who the police were unable to prove guilty, all of his Pokemon were released before his eyes. The little Bulbasaur his father had given him with his crooked smile on his birthday went into the wild without a glance back to him. He felt abandoned.

From then on, he couldn't trust anyone. He was in imprisoned for three years when he was thirteen.

His fingernails turned black and his hair went white, till it started falling out at the age of twenty. So he had to hide his hands underneath gloves and dye what was left of his hair brown. The world had no use for weaklings, so he hid signs of his humanity away from public, and only the first members of his new gang knew about those traits.

He worked hard at what he did. He didn't believe in bonding with Pokemon; not after what that Bulbasaur did; but thirsted for rare Pokemon. He started Team Rocket and wanted to take over the world, so that he could make it a better place. And to do that, he would need unquestionable dominion and influence over them.

He inserted himself into the Pokemon League Association, the world's most powerful corporation. The Pokemon which Team Rocket found were given to the League in exchange for legal protection. And that was how the Pokemon League had an influx of Pokemon.

Eventually, they formed many teams in search for power. Galactic. Magma. Aqua. Flare. A guerrilla gang called 'Team Plasma' had fallen from power, and they joined the ranks of the Pokemon League.

All of them were one organisation, but the world didn't know that. To the world, they were separate criminal organisations, all working against one another. Every time a hero of some kind appeared to stop them, sponsored by the League, money would flood into their palms. They were infinitely in power, so long as nobody launched a preemptive strike on them... As Giovanni knew from bitter experience.

The closest thing Team Rocket ever came to being defeated was at the hands of a boy called Red Tajiri, a Pokemon Master in his own right. Some minor operations had been interfered with by another boy recently, who, curiously enough, Giovanni managed to keep running into, but they were unimportant. That boy had been swept under the rug with relative ease. Red's blow was more crushing to his empire, more lethal to the world he had created.

He got his revenge by kidnapping Red, and his son, Silver.

He raised Red's son, (now known as to others as Silver Sakaki) to be a perfect assassin. He was already one of the world's best trainers, and he was only seventeen. A cruel, ruthless mastermind, who 'made his bones' when he broke into a Pokemon Lab stole his starter Pokemon from the world-renowned Professor Elm without any assistance.

Giovanni truly cherished his son, both as a servant and as his own child. But this incredible talent meant that Silver needed to be kept on a tighter reign than his other pawns.

And now here he, Giovanni Sakaki, was. With another obstacle in his path. This sort of thing cropped up a lot, and he was used to people like this, but this man was extreme: worse than the new batch of Pokemon Rangers who had taken down some of the most well paid subdivisions of the League, kept in Oblivia, Fiore and Almia.

Silver knew something about this 'Don Satoshi' that Giovanni didn't. But he didn't care.

This Don Satoshi, a thorn in his side for the past two years, had decimated virtually all of the hunting operations that Team Rocket was doing. He launched direct assaults on Team Magma and Aqua, and wasn't even afraid of Galactic's incredible military power.

And he even carried a vendetta against the corrupt officers on Giovanni's payroll, effectively stamping them out. How he found out about them was anyone's clue, but Giovanni feared he had even realised how close the Pokemon League was to the Teams. If he had, this man had intelligence worthy of Giovanni's own respect.

' _What a good soldier,'_ Giovanni thought of this Don fellow. He kept the true nature of his power a mystery: very few survivors of the attacks could attest to him to having even used Pokemon, since many of the victims went into shock. He was so unintentionally enigmatic.

Some said he used a Charizard, just like Red had. This made him laugh, like in the old days. But unfortunately, he was busy, and he was getting too old to be involved hand-to-hand in fights.

So he sent Silver. His right and left hand. The genius battler that was his son came back with results. He didn't think it possible that his son could ever lose a battle anymore, but that night, he almost lost the only child he truly cared for.

He shuffled through his paperwork, thinking about his hospitalised child. Don Satoshi managed to break one of his knees and break his nose. Minor injuries, but he was still shocked. More shocked than he was angry in fact. Who knew children were so powerful these days?

' _Speaking of children,'_ His thoughts became suddenly laced with anger that he couldn't express on his face, at least not like a boss. He kept a still face as he addressed his secretary.

'Nagi.' He told her.

She tilted her glasses upwards, having been summoned by her master. She was like a gargoyle, moving from a deathlike stillness. And yet so very calm and efficient, like a snake. She could take matters into her own hands, so the menial trite that Team Rocket brought had been assigned to her. The other teams had their own Bosses that worked underneath him.

'Bring me that brat Damien, the Kanto Champion. I want to speak to him personally.' Giovanni's harsh eyes hardened in contempt.

Damien was world loved by everyone. He was a 'role model' trainer, one that girls threw themselves at. He was damn arrogant about it as well. She hated talking to him.

Nagi hesitated before speaking. Giovanni was a tough boss. Damien was a tough customer. Neither option thrilled her.

'S-sir, he might not be awake... He was enjoying himself at the pool-'

Giovanni cut into her words. Like a hot knife through a slab of butter.

'I don't care, Nagi,' His muscles were tightened in impatience. A vein was appearing on his forehead.

'I'm growing very annoyed with that boy. Bring him here, even if you have to drag him across my headquarters by the hair on his head.'

Nagi nodded quickly before exiting the office of the Pokemon League President. The best President of the League in history's office indeed, according to the latest polls.

The world had elected a criminal as President of the Pokemon League, which was like presiding over the world in itself.

Giovanni shook his head. How the smart fox could con the herds of sheep.

Fumbling at the door for a minute, Damien entered the room in his home attire. Nagi had a look of blazing contempt in her eyes as her usually motionless body was now like a statue than a person. She held back her hatred and fury very well.

Damien had a bottle of wine in his hand. Half empty. The sun would be up for another four hours and he was already trying to get himself looped. He had an opened up button-shirt and a pair of shorts that one might wear when visiting the beach.

He took in the office of Giovanni, a place he scarcely came to. He had never seen it fully decorated, but Giovanni's practical sense of design caught him off guard.

One eighth of the room was left uncarpeted. This made an entrance hall.

A marble flooring and white washed walls became a dark red carpet and a crimson set of walls, with a large window at the top of the office that was constructed to make sure nobody could shoot Giovanni in the back.

In the space behind Giovanni, there was a stand with the only memento his father left to him. The only thing of value he had ever owned, a broken down rifle.

Across the two sides of the office were two huge raised blocks, one of which contained the single best mattress in the world, as well as all of Giovanni's private Pokemon, and a remote that controlled the entire building's electricity, sewage, and water. But Damien didn't know that.

The other block hid passageways into other parts of the Pokemon League Headquarters. This fortress was impregnable, but even if it did falter, he had a way out.

The big man, literally and figuratively, was sitting on a two man sofa, his Persian occupying a special extension built into the side of his massive solid wood desk.

A glass-top coffee table in front of the desk was accompanied by a strikingly orange four man sofa facing towards the desk. The widths of the table had solid oak chairs with armrests by them. He noticed the table was holographic, and that Giovanni often discussed big-time strategy here.

In the back of the office, he could see the boss' most prized treasure, an ancient gun. It wasn't a very good gun. Stealing it would be pointless.

The one Damien had was better, he took pride in knowing.

'Damien. Come and listen to what I have to say.' He told the boy.

Damien sat in the large sofa in front of Giovanni. His six Pokeballs dangling from his waist bobbed a bit, but he paid them no mind. His Pokemon were held of no account to him.

Giovanni looked at him maliciously.

'Damien, you know your role in this upcoming tournament, do you not?' He asked with such cold contempt that Nagi quivered. Being an uncouth young man, Damien felt the full force of Giovanni's wrath in his voice and it triggered a very masculine reaction from him. Very much what Giovanni should have expected of him, but the old man miscalculated his words. He accidentally triggered the bomb that was an annoyed Damien.

'Yeah, yeah,' He waved away Giovanni's words with a gesture, like one of the most powerful men in world's words held no value to him. Like he was somehow better than Giovanni Sakaki.

He smirked at the boss coolly. He had this, so why was he making him listen to this nonsense?

'I know what the plan is: blaze my way through this tournament: that's easy, get the prize and win that stupid bet you're on about-'

'The Azure Flute is no laughing matter, Damien! That item is crucial to our plans, and if I want to succeed, I'll need it! So if you somehow... _Screw this up..._ ' Here he crossed himself before continuing. He never swore, it was a sign of weakness.

'Woah, calm down, _grandpa!'_ He put his hands up in exaggerated defence.

'Just because you're getting old doesn't mean you can get cranky with me!' Giovanni growled. His pet Persian's eyes were gleaming in the dark, with murderous intent. The same emotions came out as waves of anger from Giovanni's form.

'You spend too much time fooling around with those three girls, whatever their names were, rather than doing work! You are a _lackey_ to them, you hot-headed fool!' Giovanni slammed his fist on the desk and leaned over it to look at the boy.

Damien yelled back, 'I don't care, I'm Damien Michaels, I'll do what I want! It's my life old man! My money, my girls!'

Giovanni's fist was so tight blood dripped from his palm onto the desk.

' _Not the first time blood has been shed in this room...'_ He thought, addressing the stain. It would clean away. He dismissed it and turned his now cool, calculating anger towards Damien in a blow that would sting his pride.

'Do you think you would have those girls kissing your ass the way they do without me? Who funded that little plan of yours to screw that Ash Ketchum out of all his money? That was a risky operation, I had to stick my neck out for you! Who the hell do you think made you Kanto Champion by moving that Red out of the way? You sure as hell didn't beat him!'

Damien protested and stamped his foot in anger.

'Screw you, old man! I'm outta here!' And he stormed out of the office.

Giovanni watched warily, his bagged eyes betraying his fury.

He had made a deal with Scott, the surprisingly intimidating, yet portly boss of the Battle Frontier. In fact, that deal was the main reason for the tournament's existence.

If one of Giovanni's representatives won the Master's Tournament then the Azure Flute was all his. But if anyone else won, then Scott could have it. And even if he tried stealing It back from him, Scott would break it first thing when it was in his hands. It wasn't indestructible, like the Plates. Even a wooden hammer would shatter it.

He shook his head in worry. If this went wrong, two hundred years of planning had just been wasted.

Damien returned to the indoor swimming pool he practically lived in, to his three girlfriends.

When his three girlfriends heard about the cruel things Giovanni said to him, they all cursed Giovanni's name. He had claimed that Giovanni had threatened to have him framed for a crime, that Giovanni was forcing him to do some extra work.

They believed all of it. These girls were faithful to him: they believed in him, and him alone.

This 'extra work' business came as an excuse to go out and enjoy himself with his friends in a bar and with some other girls. He had an honest, sincere note in his voice that made him seem so innocent to them, so irresistible.

Damien himself was a millionaire. He lived in the official Master's Quarters at the HQ, and would move into the house promised to him after he won the Tournament.

This trainer felt that he could easily brush away any competition he found, even the other Champions, because he was so lost in avarice and arrogance.

Giovanni made sure Damien didn't go up against the other Champions, though. He couldn't risk him losing the tournament. Other than that, there was no complication. Any trainers that posed a threat would be eradicated by Team Plasma, and Team Magma. No Rockets were involved, and the Galactics and Flares were in the R&D division for now. If needed, he would call in Aqua... But they were... busy.

So it was like giving Damien a house for free.

When Damien mentioned what Giovanni said about Ash to them, their anger sparked.

Ash was a criminal. A loser, scum. So many times, in front of the whole planet, they announced that he was a criminal. They were the main reason nobody wanted to feed him in their shops, or let him buy clothes from them. Like Don Satoshi left a good influence on many Pokemon, these three left their influence on many people.

However, shortly after the incident at Pallet Town, some new information came into the case of Oak's laboratory.

Shortly after the incident, CCTVs images showed that a Team Rocket member was in Professor Oak's lab, not Ash Ketchum. They brushed this off, as some sort of tampering and technical trick.

The charges against him were dropped however. Professor Oak saw the tape and realised there was only truth in it. Eventually Ash's name was cleared.

Gary, lost in youthful spite, refused to believe the tapes.

Since it was believed that his Pokemon were given to Brock and his other old friends, Ash was left without Pokemon. They cleared his name and he was eligible to make his license again, but since he had no Pokemon (that they knew of), this wasn't even an issue to anyone. No authority would tarnish their reputation by reinstating him as a trainer.

Of course, the younger generation didn't approve of this one bit. Damien and his new posse of Ash's companions had made a fuss about this, so they removed his past credit as compensation. He was no longer Orange League Champion, no longer the conqueror of the Battle Frontier, much to Scott's displeasure.

As for Ash's friends, they had all grown into new shells. Whereas Ash linked them all together with spiritual happiness, Damien was more of a materialistic link.

Misty got to be one of his Elite Four, along with fellow Rocket, Lt. Surge of Vermillion.

He wanted Blaine to join, but Blaine had gone of deep end. The League was hunting him down, but to no avail. He had valuable data about the project Giovanni had planned that needed to be kept secret.

Iris, the wannabe Dragon Master became a Dragon Type Gym Leader in Unova's Oppelucid City thanks to Damien's money.

Cilan's Gym got more reputation thanks to Damien's association with them.

Clement got a post in the Kalos Elite Four, and his sister was starting out her own journey soon. Not that Damien ever acknowledged her.

They all became like him. The light of innocence in their eyes had died. They had the eyes of criminals now. Like Damien, they abused and disregarded Pokemon. Nothing was sacred to them. Damien was their saviour. They came to him for help. He was their hope, their light, their love. Their King.

And like many kings, he had beautiful women all to himself.

May became the Top Coordinator in Hoenn and Johto. Her brown hair was silken and shiny, her body was slim and yet so robust, and she was incredible vivid. The world loved her. Her eyes had not lost their innocence. Damien loved that. She was different, she wore skimpier clothes now, and if not, tight clothes that clung to her body. But despite that, there was warmth in her eyes. As dirtily as she spoke, as dirty as she had become, she was still May Maple.

The same went for Dawn and Serena, who's eyes were like emeralds and sapphires.

Dawn was slim, cute and bubbly. She was the most arrogant of the three. Damien didn't like her cockiness as much.

Serena, however, was the embodiment of perfection to him.

The wonderful, flowing voice. Her mesmerising hair, which he forced her to grow outwards again, her wonderful body and the complexion of her skin was perfect. Her devotion to him was unwavering, and he loved that in a woman. She did everything he wanted without question or hesitance. But she never gave him that 'special honour'. None of them did.

But Damien knew time would wear their defences down. They couldn't resist him much longer, he thought, when it was really the opposite. He felt he was a God, and he was indestructible now. Here in the Pokemon League, at the top of the world. He got into fits of rage and could get people killed for having their arms broken by him. He had done that before, through the Pokemon League's influence.

And in God-like judgement, Damien didn't trust the trainers who took Ketchum's strongest Pokemon. He wanted that Charizard all for himself, and he had beaten the crap out of that Brock guy (and had his license suspended for a week) after he said he released all of them. With a smirk on his face nonetheless.

Brock wasn't bothered about the license too much. He had formed his own life, separate from the traitors. Him, Paul, Max, and Mrs. Ketchum.

* * *

Many hundreds of miles away, in a town called Greenfield, two junior trainers were battling one another. Two trainers, new to the trade of battle were sparring. Their senior, the elderly Professor Oak, watched them intently.

"Chikorita, use Vine Whip!" The first one, a small girl in a light blue dress gave the first command to her Pokémon. She had brunette hair, and eyes glinting with conviction. A very sweet, yet strongly-spoken girl.

"Mudkip, dodge the attack and use Take Down!" The second trainer had teal-coloured hair, and had a green jumper over a blue t-shirt. He wore brown khaki shorts. His special Silph Co. Designer glasses spoke volumes about his heritage. He was a rich boy, but also a well mannered one.

The Grass-Type Pokémon launched two vines from the buds on its neck, and they raced towards Mudkip. Being slower than the vines, they easily grabbed onto Mudkip and started hitting the Water-Type Pokémon. Max gritted his teeth as Mudkip was struck by the vines and fell over, defeated. Max gasped in surprise as his starter was defeated. Rushing over, he called to her. "Mudkip! Mudkip, are you alright?" He shook his Pokémon, eliciting a little groan from the Mud Fish Pokémon.

Molly Hale was congratulating her Chikorita, happy that she had beaten Max. She was proud of her Pokémon, who blushed and smiled in response. He looked at her, then down to Mudkip.

"That was a good battle, you two," Professor Oak stood up and walked to the centre. He loved talking to new trainers, especially these two. They were both full of potential. They had the tension on the battlefield, and friendship when not on the field, like true comrades.

Professor Oak turned his eyes on Max. "But do you know why you lost, Max?" Max frowned. He shook his head. Professor Oak kneeled on the ground and began to pet Mudkip's head. Molly came around to listen to the Professor's words of wisdom.

"Molly, you did well in that fight. But in a real fight against a veteran trainer, Chikorita would have been defeated much too easily." He smiled at his late research partner's daughter. Molly looked surprised. Before she could even ask the elderly man, he answered her question.

"Launching direct attacks on your enemy will almost never work, but in this case, Mudkip was too slow to respond to the attack. So you won in one hit!" He said enthusiastically. But that enthusiasm faded slightly when he looked at Max.

"As for you, young man, you have a very special Mudkip. Your father paid to have it specially bred just for you." Max looked down. His family was a touchy subject nowadays. Nobody remembered him in the house. They had someone who would inevitable become their son-in-law, and his brother-in-law now. Damien Michaels, his sister's boyfriend.

His Mudkip had a little scar on it from when Damien had decided to push him around one day. He didn't even use a Pokémon: he beat the hell out of Max, breaking his glasses, and beat the life out of his Mudkip. Nobody even cared, though, since Damien was so ridiculously powerful, both physically and politically, nobody could make a move against him. His own father denied his claims and said he was ashamed his son had become a liar. His sister- although _knowing_ about this incident, didn't care at all. She even threatened him by saying that if he told anyone about the fight, she would get Damien to destroy him.

"Max, are you listening?" Molly chided her younger friend, nudging him on the head with her right hand.

"Huh? Oh, sorry, Professor Oak. Go on, I'm listening." Molly shook her head and sighed. This boy wasn't a genius, but he wasn't an idiot either. He was somewhere in between.

"Anyway, Max, you have a very special Mudkip indeed. It knows lots of special attacks, like Take Down and even Superpower, but you still lost. Do you know why?" He repeated the earlier question, and received the same response.

"Max, you knew all of your Pokémon's strengths, but none of their weaknesses. You failed to realise how slow Mudkip was and relied on a powerful attack to win for you. Had you used Endure, Mudkip would have been able to fight and you would have won." Max nodded.

"I see. Thank you professor." He bowed his head in respect for his teacher. The professor stood up and took the two trainers into the house on top of the biggest hill in Greenfield, where Molly's father, her Pokémon, sometimes Max, and her aunty Delia lived. Molly couldn't forget what she had done to her aunty six years ago, when she was six years old. The incident with the Unown was unforgettable, but she was glad for it, because in the end, her mother and father had come back to her.

Delia Ketchum recovered from the shock of having her son framed for the crime of attacking Professor Oak's laboratory. She was grief stricken. Her family was gone completely and she felt almost alone in the world. Her mother and father had died a long time ago, and she was unable to give birth to a healthy child, meaning she probably wasn't even meant to have children. But before her husband left to train on Mt. Silver, he gave her the greatest gift in the world- miraculously, he gave her the gift of a child that they named Ash.

But fate took her Ash away from her. He was framed for a crime he didn't commit, and she couldn't understand why Professor Oak went against him like that. All of his friends had gone against him, and he was on his own. She heard about his fight with Gary and was driven to tears. How two childhood friends could turn against each other like that was beyond her. Even the girl from Pallet Town, Leaf, that Delia knew her son liked had turned against him in court. She suddenly realised how ostracized she was. Everyone in Pallet Town believed Ash was guilty. She was on her own again, just like when her husband had left, only now she had no son to take pride in. And now the world was against her.

A grim aura seeped over Pallet Town. No longer was it a happy place for her, but just grim memories. She didn't have any reason left to live, not without Red or Ash. Her family was the most important thing to her, the only thing in her life. Her house fell into disrepair, since she was so depressed. Mimey, also depressed, couldn't work knowing her mistress wasn't well. The few friends that had supported him- Scott of the Battle Frontier, Brock, Max, and Paul all came to see her, but nothing cheered her up.

Eventually, they came to her house one day, and brought Spencer Hale, her old classmate with them. They talked about how upset she was, and he flew into a rage. He demanded to see the Professor and the two had a huge argument over why Oak would chose to do something like that to Ash. He demanded that Delia come with him and live in Greenfield with him and his daughter.

His wife had passed away, meaning he had to do a double job of looking after Molly and his enormous manor, as well as his research. She knew the pain of being in that situation, so who was she to deny him that favour? She immediately set out on packing her things. All of her furniture was delivered to Spencer's mansion in days and her old house was sold for a very good price.

She moved into Greenfield, the same place she used to take Ash as a child, and lived there. Free from the grim aura and depression of Pallet Town, away from the foolish Professor Oak and his grandson.

About a year after her life in Greenfield began, she had read in the papers that the charges against Ash had been dropped. Tears of joy landed on that newspaper, and she tried everything she hadn't already done to find him. But no return. Ash Ketchum was just a ghost now: nobody had seen him since his fight in Pallet Town.

When the charges had been dropped, Professor Oak had begged her for forgiveness. Spencer seemed reluctant, but Delia forgave their old teacher. Her heart was slowly being amended, but nothing would fill the void Ash and Red left. Red sometimes- maybe twice a year- wrote a little letter to her, just reassuring her that he was still alive. But Ash never returned. Was he alive? Nobody knew. Ash had all of his strongest Pokémon with him, but there was nobody in the world who believed in him like his family did.

As for Gary, he had gone been aiming for a job at the Pokémon League R&D department. He still held a grudge against Ash, and when he heard his grandfather had 'changed sides' he got angry and said he wasn't related to that man at all.

His old friends-the ones that didn't abandon him- were getting along just fine.

Brock Takeshi became a top doctor of Pokémon, passing his exams with flying colours. He was quite rich now, and lived in his family's renovated house in Pewter City. He had enough money to prepare all of his siblings for their own futures. He remembered Ash, as being like his sibling. More like a brother than his old friend.

Max, now a trainer of his own went on a journey with Spencer's girl, Molly. Ash was like a big brother to him, and ever since he left, he decided he would train himself to fulfil Ash's legacy, and one day battle him for the title of Pokémon Master.

Molly, on the other hand, saw Ash as her hero. He had saved her and all of Greenfield from the power of the Unown, that she had inadvertently summoned.

She remembered back to the incident. According to her father's latest research, to summon the Unown, one needed to have the power of Aura, the energy of the long-lost Aura Guardians. No further attempts could summon the Unown into the world again, leading Professor Oak and Professor Hale to believe that Molly had a strong Aura.

Paul Shinji, Ash's rival during his time in Sinnoh had left the League Circuit and decided to take on the Battle Frontier Challenge, just like Ash did. Having been moved by Ash's attitude towards Pokémon, Paul resolved himself to be the best trainer he could be by connecting with his Pokémon. He himself trained with them, becoming much stronger and more capable as a result.

The payoff was enormous: Paul's Pokémon had become so powerful, that when Damien had naively challenged him, they ended up drawing. All of the traitors were shocked. Paul was as strong as the Kanto Champion.

But the Frontier Brains were tougher than ever, as Paul found out. In his final battle against Brandon, the Pyramid King didn't hold back one bit. It took three attempts, but in the end, he had taken down his six ancient Pokémon, Regice, Regirock, Registeel, Regigigas, Solrock, and Salamence.

During the process, the sixth Frontier Brain, Annabel the Salon Maiden of the Battle Tower, met up with Brock and Max. They became good friends and battled together, and after Scott gave the Frontier Brains a vacation, she had gone on a journey with them to help Max and Molly gather Kanto Gym Badges, and Molly became interested in being a Pokémon Coordinator, after she met Zoey Nozomi, the ex-top Coordinator of Sinnoh.

Whilst travelling through Kanto, Molly wanted to see a Pokémon Contest (although Paul and Max weren't too keen). As it turned out, Dawn and Zoey were competing. The final round turned into a battle between the two Coordinators- and one had the upper hand.

Zoey's Gallade beat Dawn's Lopunny with its massive Special Defence stat, handling all of her Ice Beam attacks, and when Lopunny soared in to use Feint, Gallade instantly felled her using Close Combat.

Dawn started making a fuss about how Zoey had cheated, and Brock tried to explain to her that she hadn't. Since Dawn was so vividly attached to him, Damien showed up with May and Serena. Brock grimaced knowing things were going to get horrendous from that point onwards.

Damien started making fun of Zoey, saying that she relied on cheap tactics and tricks like a hideous loser. She was visibly upset- much to Dawn's joy- and Brock tried to step in.

Damien literally threw Brock over his head, and with a menacing step, he walked towards Zoey and made to hit her, but before he could, Paul appeared out of nowhere.

"You lay a hand on her, and I'll break you like a twig." He threatened. His voice was so full of malice that Damien was terrified.

Before Damien could use his immense strength, Paul pushed him into the wall. Suddenly, blue energy started wavering around Paul.

"Let me get something straight," He said. The terrified Damien quivered under his immense strength.

"If you ever- and I mean _ever_ come close to that girl again, I will beat you within an inch of your life. Got that?" The blue energy receded and Damien ran away. The girls each sent him a hateful glare, and he realised that the blue-haired girl who travelled with Ash was someone else now.

Speaking of Dawn, she stood up and looked him in the eye.

"Who the hell do you think you are, hurting my boyfriend like that? You monster. Just you wait, Damien's going to get you killed, you freak!" She ran away after threatening Paul's life. Paul shook his head at her stupidity, but looked down at his muscles with a smirk. He had just bossed around the most arrogant Champion in world history.

Afterwards, Zoey had a lot of bad publicity thanks to Damien. It upset her, and many of her friends chose not to stay with her, in fear of being ill-portrayed by the media. But no-one in her new group of friends cared. She got to learn about Ash, about what happened to him, and about his family. How Dawn had chosen to leave such a person for a man like Damien was beyond her, but she wasn't concerned anymore.

She wore her fiery red hair in a different manner now: it reached down to her shoulders. She was definitely prettier now, at least Paul thought so.

She continued competing in contests, and her Pokémon were getting stronger.

Paul was training for the Master's Tournament now, with his six best Pokémon. Some of Ash's old Pokémon, she knew that Paul had taken, since he knew that some of them would be upset at being forced into leaving Ash. These few Pokémon that missed Ash were scarce, and they were disappointed that so many of them went against Ash. They had no respect for the ones that decided to leave their friend.

Paul had taken his Donphan, Meganium, Snorlax, Infernape, Bulbasaur, and Glalie.

Brock took his Torterra, Boldore (now a Gigalith) Squirtle, and Tauros.

Max took Corphish, Swellow, Torkoal, and Noctowl.

The Master's Tournament was fast approaching, and Paul was competing. So were Damien, May, Dawn, Serena, Misty, Iris, and Clemont and Gary.

Little did they know, so would Ash Ketchum.

* * *

That morning was one of the few times Ash didn't see the sunlight when he woke up.

The ominous sounds of a beeping machine woke him, up, his predator-like nature kicking in. He stared at the ceiling of the room he was in, wondering where on earth he was. It took him a minute, but he realised that this was a hospital bed. And that was a hospital... Ceiling.

Memories kicked in, from what he could remember. The night before, he had gotten into a fight with an extraordinarily tough trainer, who called himself Silver.

' _His name, he said it was Silver... Ketchum.'_ He absorbed that silently.

Whoever that boy was, they were undeniably related. Somehow, some way. He didn't want to think about it.

He shook his head and remembered: he had won the fist fight against Silver, so what the in the name of Arceus was _he_ in the hospital for?

He remembered. Painfully.

His shoulder felt funny: in fact, now that he thought about it, everything felt funny. Then it hit him. He had been drugged. His shoulder had been dislocated, and bitten into.

His left eyelid felt heavy, then he remembered that he had been punched as well. Even with the drug in effect, it chilled him to the bone.

His left arm also felt burned. Then as he looked back on the memory, he realised that when Feraligatr bit him, it must have been Thunder Fang, and when the brute punched him, it had been an Ice Punch.

He thought about how his Pokemon beat Silver's others.

His Pokemon had saved his life that night, yet again. He needed to repay each of them, he thought with a smile. Once he found them, at least.

Suddenly, after realising that none of his Pokemon were here, he shot out of bed. He frantically looked around the little room, for any Pokemon, any Pokeballs.

He saw a small box next to his bed. He broke it open with his left fist- again, hurting his shoulder- and saw it was a box of rice-balls.

He ran out of the little cubicle, ripping apart the curtain that separated the beds, and searched everywhere within that mysterious wards, until some nurses caught him by both his arms and dragged him back to his room.

'No, no, you have to stay still! You'll get hurt!' They tried to reason with him, but none of the words stuck. He had to leave. He had to find Pikachu, and Sylveon, and Charizard and all the others!

His rampage stopped when the curtains of the room (still torn) opened violently, with a strong yet controlled sound. He froze, looking up at the man who entered the room.

'Hello there, young man.'

This doctor was huge. Ash stood at five foot, four inches, not all that tall, but this man's neat black hair was an easy eight feet off the ground.

He was a _huge_ man: his large, broad shoulders told Ash that he best shut up, lest this man punch him and give him another black eye.

'How are you feeling?' The doctor asked him.

Ash could see him clearly now. The Nurse Joys restraining him didn't loosen their grip one bit.

'I don't know.' He said. His whole body was numb: numb with worry, not medicine.

'Oh? You don't know?' The doctor raised his eyebrow. Despite the look on his face, his voice was emotionless. Indifferent.

Then his eyes seemed to light up.

'Oh, I know!' He smashed his gloved fist into his open palm

'This should help you make up your mind.' He dug into his pocket and brought out lots of little spheres. He held one of them in front of Ash. Ash recognised the lightning bolt on the face of the ball.

'This one is a Pikachu,' He said in his monotonous voice. Ash reached out to grab his Pikachu.

'This one was a nightmare when we first admitted him in. It refused to let us treat it until it knew where you were. Then, after it saw you covered in blood, it became scared and we had to use one of the Nurse Joy's Pokemon's Sleep Powder to make it stay in its Pokeball.'

Ash didn't listen to a word. He tried reaching out, despite the pain in his shoulder. Despite the pull of the three nurses.

'Are you alright now? If not, we'll take a look at you again. If you are, then say it.'

Ash didn't even hesitate.

'Yes! I'm alright! Now give me Pikachu-' The doctor shoved a hand over his mouth and was about to scold Ash for disturbing the patients when said boy bit down on his hand.

The doctor screamed, and every patient in the hospital woke up: even the morticians looked alive.

Shortly after, the doctors discharged Ash at last, and he was on his way. They had told him to take care of his shoulder, and that it would only hurt for a few days more.

But Ash felt the pain vanish in hours.

Now Ash had a choice to make. He stared at the sheet in front of him.

Ash explained the invitation's purpose. He explained that part of him had wanted to use the invite and compete, and the other part of him didn't.

Three years ago, when he had been thrashed by Damien at Indigo Plateau, the crowds yelled his name with such malice, and Damien's with such affection. He hated that. He didn't want to return, and the original six Pokemon he started this quest with had the same view. He gave up his license as soon as the Pokemon League proposed his suspension. The news always had new stories about his misadventures, lots of things that never happened. One story claimed that he abused Pikachu and that he was unloving towards Pokemon, and expressed hope that Damien's nature would rub off on him.

He couldn't live like that. That was one reason he left Pallet Town.

He suddenly remembered the Pokemon who had betrayed him. The ones who stayed behind and laughed at him. The ones that stopped Meganium, Infernape, Donphan, and Snorlax from being with their trainer.

He couldn't stand the thought. When Gary punched him and scarred his face, they just watched. For months, he blamed himself for that, for not training them right. For not spending enough time with them. He thought he was a terrible trainer.

That day was when Sylveon evolved for him. Out of a desire to help her trainer, she took a new form on. When Ash saw that Sylveon evolved, he realised that it was their bond that helped her evolve, and that all of his old Pokemon had spat on those bonds.

Sylveon made him realise that he was a good trainer. And ever since then, he always came out a winner, even when he was defeated in battle, because he had his friends by his side.

The criminals in the underworld, who stood behind enslaved Pokemon, like Tyranitar and Salamence cowered in fear when they heard the name Don Satoshi, because of both him and his signature Pokemon, Sylveon. People associated Ash Ketchum with his Pikachu, and Don Satoshi with his Sylveon.

When the six Pokemon Ash took with him all disagreed with the concept, Lucario went along with the crowd, and it was agreed that Larvesta and Larvitar wouldn't be competing either way, Sylveon knew something was amiss.

'But everyone,' Sylveon addressed the group. All eyes were on the Eevelution.

'We're not the same as when we started this journey. We've all grown up and become stronger,' She looked at Ash.

'We're strong now, because Ash was strong for us. Are we just going to sit here and let that favour go unpaid?' There was a wave of murmuring amongst the crowds. She smirked. She had them. Suddenly, they all jumped when Charizard stomped his foot down.

'Sylveon's right! We may have lost three years ago, but that was almost a lifetime ago! Think about how much more powerful we've become now! If we go now, we'll show everyone just how powerful we are now, and then we'll show that wretched Pokemon League just what justice is all about! Yeah, this is a plan!' Charizard roared and spat out a massive Flamethrower to the sky in excitement.

Ash was almost crying.

'Charizard...' He whispered.

Feraligatr grinned.

'I don't know about you guys, but I can't wait to show the world what I can do! And once we're done with this tournament, I'd like to get another shot at that Feraligatr... He won't stand a chance next time!' Everyone grinned at the prospect of fighting again.

A huge smirk graced Sceptile's face.

'And if we see those traitors again, they're going to pay! Big time!.' He used Leaf Blade on the space in front of him, just to showcase his incredible power, and what he would do if he saw his enemies again.

Ash was crying tears of joy now.

The coldness of Don Satoshi was gone. The warm heart of Ash Ketchum was back, however momentarily it was for.

'... You guys...' He stopped to sob a little. He brushed his tears away with his sleeve. His eyes, now dried off, showed a steel conviction, as radiant as the sun.'

'We're going,' He said.

'Look out world! Don Satoshi is coming for you!'

And high in the sky, watching his every movement, Ho-Oh saw his every movement.

"I _s it time_?" The Rainbow Pokémon asked the Diving Pokémon.

" _Yes."_ Lugia responded to Ho-Oh.

" _It is time for the Chosen One to become an Aura Guardian."_

 **Phew! This one took forever... And it's not even that action packed... Don't worry... Next chapter, Ash will be getting his money's worth.**

 **Harem so far is on my profile under the 'My Stories' Section.**

 **If you want me to put a girl the harem, then mention it in your review... You will review, won't you?**

 **But make sure it's included in an actual review! Don't just say 'I want this character in'.**

 **Requests like that will just be ignored, okay?**

 **I'm afraid that characters will not be removed by the harem unless I decide to move them myself. When it comes to removals, my word is final.**

 **Thank you for reading, next chapter will have a slight delay because I'm busy and it's a long chapter. I hope you enjoyed this so far!**

 **SG3, out.**


	4. The Blessing of The Aura

**Chapter IV**

 **Aura Guardians**

 **Hey, everybody, look who's back! It's another chapter of 'Seeking Freedom'! It's been a long time, but I hope you haven't forgotten this! Don't forget to like, follow, and REVIEW!**

* * *

Last time:

"... It is time for the Chosen One to become an Aura Guardian."

* * *

Ash slept under the trees, with his Pokémon around him. Within the blackness of sleep, a voice called out to him.

" _Ash..."_

Suddenly, he wasn't in the forest. He was in a far more majestic place. A pure white palace. on a canvas of infinite blackness. He stood upon a platform that was gold and translucent. A stairwell lead to the gate of the palace. He looked through the ground, and saw: the stars were _below_ his feet.

"...Where am I?" He questioned himself. "Where is everyone?" He coldly stared around. There was nothing behind him- thoughts about leaping from the platform crossed his mind, but peering over the edge and seeing the multi-coloured streaks of light across the cosmos changed his mind.

"You are in the Hall of Origin," A voice said. "Come inside. It is rude to loiter outside." Ash looked on in silence.

Before him was a regal Pokémon. A yellow head, and a blue body with purple wing-like constructs floated before him. The Pokémon's head was shaped like a moon.

Ash recognised the Pokémon. He had met a Cresselia before; it was a Legendary Pokémon, something he had not seen in a while.

Cresselia beckoned him into the palace, and he followed the New Moon Pokémon into the Hall. The Palace was grander on the inside: there was a hall with planes of grass and waterfalls pouring from the ceiling. A ball of bright, blue fire lit the hall up from above, and a ball of cold ice floated above, like the sun and moon. Grand panes of different colours made a vibrant rainbow of the Hall. Between the two streams of water was a stairway of stone. Cresselia wandered through the hall, and Ash followed her through the stairs.

"Just what do you want with me?" Ash demanded. The feudal wrath of Don Satoshi made itself known.

"All will be explained." The Pokémon answered, completely unthreatened by his Aura.

"Where are my Pokémon?"

Cresselia stopped. "Where you left them. Now stop asking questions, and maybe you will receive an answer." The feminine, motherly voice left him feeling emasculated. He closed his mouth and waited.

Situated atop the stairs, a vast, round room, with a pattern of what looked like the world sitting the middle held many passageways to twisting paths and winding roads. Cresselia wandered towards the middle, and raised Ash up with her in a beam of light.

"Lord Arceus, I have summoned the Chosen One." She said.

Ash looked around. There were many Legendary Pokémon there, each with large rings binding their massive powers to a central figure. Many rings were littered on the floor, however.

"Ah, the Chosen One. I am grateful, Cresselia," A withered voice said. A withered Pokémon stood up with withered flesh. "Ash Ketchum," The Central Figure- Arceus, the Alpha Pokémon, looked at Ash fondly.

"I am looking at you after three years. I sense deep pain in your heart. Deep darkness, as well."

Ash looked towards the Alpha Pokémon. Even with withered flesh, power radiated from the large, silver creature like light from the sun. It was almost overwhelming. It dwarfed the powers of the surrounding titans.

"...Just what are you, and why am I here?" Ash found the courage to ask. Suddenly, he felt small.

Arceus gave him a fatherly smile: something he wasn't used to. "I am Arceus, the Original One, who keeps the Universe in balance. This place, beyond the clouds, is the Hall of Origin. I have summoned you here, because you are the only one who can do me a favour, Ash." He explained. "Or do you prefer Don Satoshi?" Ash's eyes narrowed. This Pokémon wasn't only strong, but incredibly intelligent.

"A favour? What can I do?" Ash replied. Arceus smiled.

"As you can see," A Legendary Pokémon said. It was Lugia. "We Legendary Pokémon were created here, in order to preserve the balance of the world. You have met many of us before, haven't you, old friend?"

Ash suddenly remembered the events in the Orange Islands, and Shamouti Island's Guardian of The Sea. Lugia smiled knowingly.

Arceus resumed the speech. "I am the one that watches over the Legendary Pokémon. I keep their powers balanced in nature, from the Lesser Legends to the Original Deities. I control their powers using these rings,"

The Legendaries showed their binds, with Omni-coloured rings.

"Recently, humans have found ways to control and bind the Legends, thus breaking the control my rings have over them. They have taken my children from me. More importantly, however, they plan on using their tremendous power for their own accord. In throwing the world out of balance, they will result in the destruction of all things good, and I will die, along with all Creation."

The Pokémon League was behind this. Ash suddenly realised: the heavy machines, the odd movements the grunts made, and their talk of 'huge plans' suddenly became clear.

"My children have been stolen, and I am slowly dying. If they are not returned to me, the universe will be doomed. I had my doubts, when I saw the darkness in your heart, but I also see resolution, and a desire for world peace. Please, Ash, I ask you to help me."

Ash realised the true significance of his quest. From initially wanting revenge to wanting peace for the world, Ash changed from a warrior to a martyr for the Alpha.

"Yes," Ash smiled. "I wish to fight to save the Legendary Pokémon." Arceus smiled.

"Thank you," The Alpha croaked. "Remember, Ash: many of the Legends have fallen into the hands of good trainers and may have formed bonds with them. Make sure that they are not corrupted by it. I have given you a Ring for controlling Legendary Pokémon. Make good use of it!"

Ash nodded. Suddenly, a beam of light lifted him, and a new set of clothes covered him. Blue gloves, grey trousers and a large black cloak with a high collar.

"Clothes fitting a hero," Arceus smiled. "Also, I've told your Pokémon about this as well. They know their mission will not be easy, but they are prepared to fight."

Ash reawakened. Suddenly he was cold, and all of his Pokémon surrounded him.

"Where are we?" He demanded.

"It's cold and rocky," Staraptor said calmly, with his eyes shut. "They've left us in Sinnoh." The cold winds flew over them. Ash's bangs moved aside in the wind.

"Let's find some cover." The moon was still a crescent. The sky was dark. They took a look around. Behind them was the ruins of Spear Pillar.

"... It seems that the gateway to the Hall Of Origin was inside the Spear Pillar." Sceptile pointed out. "Now we must be atop Mt. Coronet."

Ash sighed. Suddenly, the Ring Arceus had given him began to glow. "Is a Legendary Pokémon around?" Sylveon asked.

Suddenly, a roar filled the night sky. A black airship docked itself. The Ring began to glow brightly. Ash shoved it into his messenger bag and shut it. "It's a liability right now. I can sense it,".

Suddenly, he could sense everything. On the airship was Hunter J, and two Legendary Pokémon were on board.

"I hope you're all ready for another battle."


	5. The Start of A Legend

****Seeking Freedom: Chapter V:****

 ** **The Tournament Begins!****

 ** **AN: Two chapters in a row! I'M ON HOLIDAY, I CAN WRITE AGAIN!****

* * *

 ** _Last time:_**

 ** _"I hope you're ready for another battle."_**

Chapter V:

The Tournament Begins: Don Satoshi's Astonishing Arrival

Part A: Battle On Mt Coronet

Pokémon Hunter J descended to the ground. Her Salamence roared in the night sky, but her new team mate was silent. The gargantuan Flygon said nothing, but instead darted through the night sky like a laser beam. J yelled orders into her mouthpiece to her grunts: "Scan Mt. Coronet. I want no stone left unturned. NOW!" A large number of grunts flew out of the ship, with hover crafts and on the backs of Pokémon.

J landed near the top of the mountain, where she decided on doing a top-down search, even if she had to burn the whole mountain down to a pile of ashes. Ash fell still- she was so close to them: any movement would result in their detection.

Ash had fought Hunter J once, when Riolu became part of their family: she was ruthlessly strong. Her Pokemon were specially trained so that they may overcome all of their natural limits via her torturous training. It took all of his wits to outsmart her and land a finishing blow, which only resulted in the temporary defeat of her Salamence. It wasn't like when he was a kid- now, she was more powerful.

"Drapion, help me out," She ordered. A purple creature emerged, with dark joints and white fangs. It resembled a giant scorpion, with the eyes of a vulture.

Ash watched her descend. Salamence and Drapion were one thing, but this Flygon looked rough as well. She didn't have it last time they fought. A dark aura emerged from Drapion and Salamence. He watched them carefully. Their movements were snappy. They looked much more aggressive. Whatever came over them?

"Pikachu, do you see it? That black aura?" He whispered.

"No, what are you talking about?"

Ash blinked. How could he not see it?

A voice called out to him. A powerful voice that made his head spin a little bit. " _Ash? Have you learned how to use your Aura Senses yet?"_

It was Arceus! Arceus was speaking directly to him somehow.

" _Arceus? What do you mean, 'Aura Senses'?"_

" _Yes. When you came to the Hall of Origin, it seems like my decaying energy seeped into your body and awakened your untapped Aura Powers. Right now, you have subconsciously taught yourself how to sense other lifeforms from being exposed to my power. With practice, you can learn to manipulate them and forge your own attacks."_

" _I see. That would be very useful."_

" _The more of the Legendary Pokemon you rescue, the more powerful your Aura will become,"_

Ash wanted to tell Arceus to tell him more, but he realised that Arceus had left. The spinning had stopped completely. He felt more focused. Now he could concentrate.

Ash beckoned Staraptor to his side. Flygon, Drapion and Salamence had formed a shield around the Hunter. "Staraptor, can you hit J from this angle?" He whispered.

"Not a chance. I'd get flattened." He responded.

"Heat Wave, then. Distract them." Staraptor nodded in agreement.

A burst of air rushed through the mountains. Salamence flew upwards to follow it, and Drapion glared up. Flygon seemed to realise something.

"Of course," Ash seethed. "Flygon have very good eyesight." Flygon raced towards them.

The three of them ducked down. Flygon still didn't see them, but that didn't satisfy the Desert Spirit one bit. "Flyyyyyy..." An orange ball lit up the skies. Flygon charged it's Hyper Beam.

"Damnit, we're screwed!" Ash hissed. Hunter J turned to stare at Flygon.

"Flygon! A Latias couldn't hide behind small rocks like that! You'll alert the Latias by doing that!"

Flygon looked unwilling to respond. It seemed hell-bent on blowing them up.

"FLYGON! I have given you an ORDER! Now come back here, now!" They counted their lucky stars. The orange ball vanished. Looking backwards begrudgingly, Flygon returned to J's side.

"What are we going to do?" Staraptor growled. Hunter J wasn't just powerful- she was ruthless. She was a cheater. Where she could hurt one person, she would kill a hundred.

"How about we run?" He returned all of his Pokémon, bar Pikachu and Staraptor. "If we find Latias first, we can get away. We're so outnumbered right now." Pikachu suggested. They remembered the large number of grunts that descended from the aircraft and shuddered.

They agreed in silence, and hurried away. Travelling down the mountain, Ash looked at the luminous Ring, which was glowing red and white faintly.

"Latias must be nearby. How do we know which way to go?"

They wandered through the snow-coated mountain and followed the Ring's light. Suddenly, it grew brightly.

"How 'bout you give me the ring, and I find Latias first?" Staraptor asked Ash.

Ash nodded. "Be careful. I don't want you to get hurt, alright?" Staraptor smirked. With this, Ash handed the Ring over. Staraptor flew upwards, and scoured the air. Minutes later, he signalled to them, and they followed him.

"C'mon. J's people might see the light from the Ring," Ash urged. They trudged in through vast mounds of ice and snow and found their way into an icy grotto near the summit. Thick, evil-looking trees filled the grotto. Staraptor descended. Entangled in the trees was a crimson wing, and a writhing body.

" _Jackpot,"_ Ash suddenly realised why he couldn't sense Latias' Aura: Latias was in critical condition.

"Pikachu, use Iron Tail! Staraptor, use Air Cutter!"

Pikachu jumped and cut down the branches with a silver tail, and Staraptor unleashed white blades of wind, shaking the trees. They took a good look at the Dragon: a long, white neck and a crimson body with crimson wings. The sky blue triangle on it's forehead was glowing brightly. It was trying to use Safeguard to protect itself.

The three of them sat down, on the freezing mountain, and watched the Dragon's glow. They realized what a bad position they were in: squatting in a grotto, with a damaged Legendary that needed protection, from hundreds of grunts- not to mention, Pokemon Hunter J. It was only a matter of time before the grunts arrived. There was no point in trying to move until Latias was able to.

All eyes were on Latias: if she couldn't move in time, a full-blown war would escalate between Ash and J.

Latias kept struggling, trying to keep herself safe. Ash watched her, unable to help her past the veil around her body. He shuddered and shivered. Where were the grunts, and when would they find them? When would the bloodshed begin?

After what felt like hours, Pikachu heard a small click. A ray of light flooded the grotto. Pikachu growled. "Keep calm, Pikachu." Ash whispered. "Keep calm," He told himself. Suddenly, Don Satoshi's cool confidence washed over him.

"Agent three-one-two, repeat, agent three-one-two. I've located a thermal reading identical to that of Latias. Over- hey, what the...?" Ash raced forwards like a shadow under the sun, and punched the grunt in the stomach. The grunt toppled, and Ash dug his head into the snow.

"REQUESTING ASSISTANCE!" He screamed on his way down. Ash gritted his teeth. Suddenly, he could sense again. Ash sensed all of the grunts appearing from all sides.

"Battle stances. Now!" He yelled.

The three of them took their stances, protecting Latias. "You guys ready?" They nodded.

First, waves of Mightyena came howling at them. Staraptor screeched, and started his Close Combat attack: one hit for each Mightyena. Pikachu launched a Quick Attack on each of them, knocking them down.

Secondly, a wave of Golbat soared down from above. Pikachu jumped on Staraptor's back, and took to the air. Pikachu leaped into the treetops, and a rain of electricity knocked the Golbat out of the sky.

The grunts kept coming, and the Pokemon slowly became stronger. After the last horde of vicious Mimikyu, there were only four grunts left to go!

Hundreds of fainted Pokemon lay around the grotto. The remaining grunts closed in on Ash. "Only four left?" Ash taunted.

"You haven't seen the worst of it yet, punk!" They responded. They released their last four Pokemon: four hulking Metagross towered over them, each with eyes red as fire, and claws as sharp as swords.

Now there was a challenge.

The Metagross' eyes began to glow blue, and Latias was lifted up. She began to scream, but Pikachu crashed down on them with a resounding Iron Tail, distracting them long enough for Staraptor to unleash a vast Heat Wave. The Metagross recoiled from the attack, and Ash saw his chance.

He leaped onto one of the Metagross' heads, and it rose up again and started shaking to get him off.

Metagross roared, and brandished it's four arms, unable to reach. It struck the other Metagross there as well as itself, and Ash clung for dear life.

"Now, let's finish this!" Ash called out. He hit Metagross, and leaped off of the body of the Iron Leg Pokemon. Pikachu's cheeks sparked, and Volt Tackled all four of them.

Suddenly, the Iron Leg Pokemon all began to repel each other: Pikachu's Volt Tackle had induced them all with a positive charge!

Soon, the Metagross were unable to close in: their Psychic powers failed to over come the magnetic field.

Ash smirked. "Is that all?" He panted. The grunts all growled. "You… Hunter J will have your head!" They all moved away from Ash.

One last man came to stand between him. A man in a lab coat stared his Pokemon down.

"Black hair… Teenager," He listed off. "Viciously powerful: very efficient in combat. You must be Don Satoshi, the enemy of Team Rocket."

Ash was not fazed. "You seem to know that name quite well,"

Ein wasn't put off by his intimidating attitude. "I am Chief Ein. I am the head of the Pokemon Research Department of the Pokemon League Association. I understand that you aim to persecute us, for our "crimes" against Pokemon."

Don Satoshi narrowed his eyes. He became ferocious

"Why would you tell me that? You've just given away that you're a criminal!"

"You won't live to tell the tale," He said.

"Raikou! Eliminate the menace!" The Ring in Ash's bag began to glow with an amber light. Ein threw a black Pokeball with yellow markings on it. It opened at once, and the skies blackened and thunderbolts dropped from the heavens.

" _No way… First J, now this?_ _"_

Raikou appeared. It towered over them, and it roars sounded like thunder. The yellow beast with a purple cloud bared it's fangs, revealing a ball of energy, which it shot to the sky.

Ein laughed a sinister cackle. "My Raikou is perfection. I have turned it into a machine for battle. This will be your doom!"

Ash wasn't scared by the light show, or the roars. Neither were his Pokemon. They charged into battle valiantly.

"Pikachu, use Iron Tail on Raikou! Staraptor, follow Pikachu!"

Hopefully, this crazy plan would work.

Pikachu sprinted through the snow at top speed. His silver tail shone in the moonlight, which poured down from between the clouds.

Raikou followed Pikachu as well. Raikou moved like a photon.

Pikachu and Raikou drifted as they ran past each other. Pikachu launched himself into the air with Quick Attack and came down with a shining Iron Tail.

"Raikou, use Crunch to grab that rat. Fling it into the sky!"

"Raiii-" Raikou chomped down! Pikachu squealed in pain. Raikou tossed Pikachu around for a bit, and launched him furiously into the air. Staraptor caught him on his back.

"Ha! Now, use Thunder to eliminate both of them!" Ein cawed.

"We're not done yet! Pikachu, wait for it- then jump!"

Ein looked humoured at the thought- a Pikachu, defeating his Raikou?

Raikou roared. Thunder could be heard throughout the mountain range, and a titanic bolt of lightning came crashing down from the heavens. It's magnitude was such that Ash didn't know if Pikachu could handle it.

"IRON TAIL!"

Although his tail hurt from the Crunch earlier, Pikachu repeated the attack. The thunderbolt changed it's trajectory. It infused itself with Pikachu, who began to glow with a golden aura.

"This," Ash began. "Is our ultimate technique!"

Since the lightning hit Pikachu mid air, Staraptor ducked down. A wave of energy poured from his body.

Pikachu landed on the ground, and the bite marks on his tail healed over in a flash.

"This is nothing," Ein said. "Extreme Speed. Dispose of him." Suddenly, Ein felt less confident.

"There is no way a former Cipher Admin will be defeated by a child!"

"Cipher… _They're a criminal organisation."_ Ash suddenly remembered- Team Magma talked about them at one of their bases. What did they say about Cipher?

Raikou dashed forwards, but Pikachu beat him to it. Pikachu was as fast as a photon.

"Grass Knot!" Ash called. With the aid of his Storm Power, Pikachu tripped up Raikou, and the Thunder Pokemon howled in agony when it fell to the ground.

"Iron Tail- send him flying!" Raikou roared in pain as it went flying up.

"Staraptor- you know what to do!" Raikou seethed in fury.

Staraptor grinned, and ascended.

"HYPER IMPACT!"

Staraptor came down at a tremendous velocity. The Giga Impact caused Staraptor to become a blazing body of power, and Staraptor shot out a Hyper Beam, which wrapped itself around his form.

Raikou felt the full force of Hyper Impact against it's stomach, and it roared and crashed into the snow, and Staraptor landed next to Ash, exhausted.

Ein's face flushed with crimson colours. "You," He growled. "You remember this!"

He recalled Raikou, and started to run.

"You're not getting away, Ein!" Ash made to summon Charizard, but suddenly...

Suddenly, a vast shadow enveloped them. A ferocious, navy blue Salamence crashed into the snow, and a Drapion leaped off of it's back. Flygon appeared next to Salamence and growled at them.

"Ash Ketchum. Who would've thought someone like you could be so evil? Look how much damage you've done to my team." Pokemon Hunter J's commanding voice struck him like an arrow through the heart.

"Look what you've done. You've cost these men their lives." She said sweetly.

"What do you mean? I haven't killed anyone yet!" Ash barked at her.

J pulled out her arm cannon- the one that turned living things into statues. Four blasts filled the sky with bangs.

"You proved to me that they were useless. Dead weight is easier to carry when it isn't squirming around," She turned her gaze to Latias, and then back to Ash. Although he felt that the evil humans deserved it, he couldn't stop pitying the four grunts and the fainted Metagross.

"Those men had families, you know."

"I'm not giving you this Latias."

Hunter J sighed in exasperation.

"...Why? Why do you pointlessly defend these silly Pokemon?"

"They're our equals on this planet! You have no right to treat them like this!" Pokemon Hunter J raised her eyebrow behind her concealing eyebrow.

"What about you? You make your Pokemon fight for you."

"They fight with me! We're in this together!"

Pikachu and Staraptor stepped forwards. Staraptor Roosted between the fights, and was ready for another round. Pikachu's Storm Power still seemed plentiful.

"Pitiful… It looks like I'll have to kill you. Drapion, Toxic Spikes. Torture him."

Ash put his fists up. Staraptor used Defog, and the Spikes cleared away.

Hunter J frowned.

"Do you want to make things difficult? Flygon, use Stone Edge on that Staraptor."

Ash saw her Flygon in action for the first time. No wonder she had made it her own Pokemon: it went from zero to sixty in the blink of an eye.

"Pikachu, leap onto the rocks, and follow Flygon."

Flygon moved like lightning: it was barely visible (although the dragon was not as fast as Raikou, it could fly), and a stream of sharp rocks were hurled towards Staraptor.

Pikachu leaped onto Staraptor, then onto the rocks. Staraptor ducked down and the rocks missed him, and Pikachu jumped from edge to edge.

"Chuaaa… PIKA!" The two both used Iron Tail, with Pikachu hitting the mark, and Flygon hit the ground. Flygon grunted as the Steel attack bounced off of it's head.

Everyone's eyes flashed after watching Flygon's attack hit the ground: the earth shook and split with the force of Iron Tail.

"Dark Pulse, Drapion! Dragon Pulse, Salamence! Aim for Pikachu!"

Ash responded quickly.

"Staraptor, Close Combat on Drapion! Pikachu, just dodge Dragon Pulse!"

Staraptor struck Drapion, and got locked into grappling with it. Staraptor's sharp kicks met Drapion's overpowering swipes. They viciously fought, until Drapion grabbed Staraptor with it's tail.

"It looks like your Staraptor will be the first to fall." J commented.

Pikachu avoided the Dragon Pulse, and Flygon ducked down.

"On second thought… Salamence! Burst!"

The Dragon Pulse exploded between the two Pokemon. Pikachu and Flygon were both flung back by the impact of the attack. Pikachu scuttled to his feet and ran back to Ash's side, panting and out of breath. The yellow light faded, and Pikachu was down for the count.

"Pikachu, return. Sylveon, I chose you!" Pikachu scampered back into the bag, and out came Sylveon, whom let out a vicious, yet cute bark.

Drapion grabbed Staraptor, and it's tail hung over it's mouth. Drapion was HUNGRY. Staraptor had a plan, though: it pretended to struggle and resist being eaten.

As soon as Drapion opened it's jaws, Staraptor glowed in bright red and shot upwards, grazing Drapion's face. Staraptor turned blue, and crashed into Drapion's body.

"Brave Bird!" Ash responded, full of pride in his friend's show of power. Staraptor sparked blue, and collapsed. Drapion hissed in vehemence and roared. Ash thanked him, and sent out Lucario in his place.

"So, this is your infamous Sylveon? And is that the Aura Sphere Riolu?"

Lucario stared at it's former torturer. He scowled and growled, and his eyes filled with primal fury.

" _Yo_ _u think that because you are unique that you are somehow free? No, you are different from everyone else: that makes you a slave to the world! YOU WILL BE MY PAWN!_ _"_ Lucario remembered J's cruelty, and roared.

"Lucario, let's show J how strong you've become. Extreme Speed!"

J smiled. "Salamence, use Fire Fang on Lucario. I plan on re-capturing it."

Ash's eyes narrowed.

"Sylveon, Moon Blast."

Salamence flung itself forwards and aimed to bite Lucario. Lucario back-flipped, and kicked Salamence in the face.

"Sylve…." Sylveon's attack was interrupted by Flygon suddenly materialising before her. Sylveon looked on in horror when the sand-dragon looked ready to dispose of her.

"Iron Tail!" J ordered. Past her goggles, Ash could sense her deep, sadistic pleasure at the thought of hurting Sylveon.

"SYLVEON!" Ash called out.

Sylveon unleashed her energy on Flygon, sending it flying backwards. Sylveon recoiled slightly, and panted for breath.

Lucario ran towards Drapion.

"NOW!" Lucario roared. "REVENGE: AURA SPHERE BARRAGE!"

A blue streak came from Lucario's arms. A ball materialised in his hands, and he soared upwards.

"BARRAGE ATTACK!" He roared. Out of the ball, a million bullet-sized Aura Spheres appeared from the ball. Drapion winced, and the barrage sent him reeling back. Lucario landed on the ground, not finished.

"Bone Rush!" He roared. A blue club appeared, and he beat Drapion with it.

Ash watched Lucario carefully. Drapion's movements may have been savage, but Lucario's combat had become barbaric. Suddenly, Drapion collapsed on the floor, giving Lucario a golden opportunity to end the battle.

This wasn't the sort of thing Hunter J's Pokemon did.

"LUCARIO! DRAPION HAS TRICKED YOU!" He called out.

Indeed. Drapion grinned, and as Lucario raised the bone over his head, the Dark Pokemon grabbed him with it's tail, just like with Staraptor.

J chuckled. "It seems some never learn. Fire Fang, Drapion."

Lucario's eyes widened. Lucario was held upside down, head first, right towards Drapion's gaping jaw.

Suddenly, a blue Aura appeared around Ash's body.

" _What the…? Did Arceus give me this power?"_

"Lucario!" Ash called. Suddenly, Lucario felt a wave of power rush through him. Lucario's eyes turned blue, and Drapion became immobile. Through Ash, Lucario had learned Psychic!

Freeing himself, Lucario took the chance to destroy Drapion once and for all. He flipped Drapion with his new-found power, and unleashed his ultimate attack.

"Aura Blast!" He concentrated. An orange body of energy- Focus Blast- appeared, and Lucario mixed it with his accurate Aura Sphere., and the attack took the form of a spinning shuriken. The blue and brown sphere exploded in Drapion's face, and everyone else recoiled from the force of the explosion.

"Drapion… You've failed. Return, I'll punish you later."

Salamence took Drapion's place on the left, and Flygon stood on the right. The two Dragons were ferocious.

"No more fun and games, Ketchum."

Ash growled.

"Why do you want Latias so bad, J?"

Pokemon Hunter J looked unamused at his question.

"Profit. My employer is offering a very high price for these Legendary Pokemon, therefore I must catch them."

Ash analysed what she said. Hunter J, of all people, had no use for money. She had enough of it, after all.

"I don't think money is the issue for you. Hiring this many grunts was like pocket change for you, wasn't it? Your only expense is that ship of yours."

Hunter J folded her arms.

"You're smarter than I recall. You figured out my price," She sighed. "I'll tell you my secret. It's human nature to value those close to you, right?"

Ash nodded. The stars in the sky shone down, and in the moonlight, he could see a lone tear fall from J's cheek.

"For years now, I've been fighting for one thing. My son's life is the price. After what happened here three years ago, between you and Team Galactic, I planned on never going after a Legendary Pokemon again. My employers had different plans, however."

"My son is one of the strongest trainers in the world. He dwarfs even me in power. He went to compete in a tournament, where he was framed for cheating. Later that same year, his prized Pokemon were stolen."

Ash listened carefully. Suddenly, he felt a pang of sympathy for her.

"The Pokemon League would like us to capture the Legendary Pokemon, in exchange for my son's innocence. I taught my son the tricks of the trade, and he even joined in. He's already caught three Legendary Pokemon for them. If I want to keep my son alive, then I must have that Latias! Nobody, and I mean nobody, stands between mother and child!"

Ash looked down. Lucario and Sylveon looked forwards. He suddenly remembered his own mother. Where was she, after she went into shock?

Where was he, when she needed him?

"Hunter J," He said.

"You don't have to do this to yourself. Please. Latias has the right to live." He hoped to convince her.

"So does my son."

"..." Ash fell silent.

Suddenly, the past three years became blurred to him. Did he do the right thing, running away?

Suddenly he wanted to return home to her. To his old life- but then he remembered the harshness of their betrayals. He made a fist.

Hunter J returned her focus to the battle. She folded her arms.

Flygon and Salamence continued battling Sylveon and Lucario. The psuedo legendary Pokemon were still kicking, and Ash's Pokemon were growing weary.

"I'll help your son." Ash decided. She looked flabbergasted. Was he JOKING?

"Help him…?"

"Yes," Ash responded. Hunter J stood still for a minute. Her body became still, and her resolution wavered. Suddenly:

"Salamence. Flygon. Cease."

They hadn't heard this command since they were brutally trained the meaning of the word.

Immediately, however , the black aura around Salamence reappeared, and Salamence roared into the sky. Salamence started to rampage!

"SALAMENCE!" J roared. Salamence refused to obey her, and fired two Dragon Pulses in her directon. The Dragon Pokemon roared a terribly evil roar. Then, a bright red Flamethrower razed the grotto, and was aimed straight for Ash.

A green shield protected him. "Laaaa." Latias' Protect saved him!

" _Latias is awake again!"_ Ash realised. He owed Latias his life now.

Salamence howled and roared, and then took off. Shortly after, the sky lit up with distant looking stars.

"Draco Meteor…?" J thought. Flygon's eyes narrowed.

"Ash, you know how strong my Salamence is! If it uses Draco Meteor here, it could cause an earthquake!" J shouted.

Ash noticed: J's demeanour had changed. She was suddenly concerned about staying on the mountain, rather than staying alive. Was she going to risk her life for capturing Latias?

" _Why doesn't she just escape?"_ It was then he realised: she was concerned for Salamence's safety as well.

"Let's call a truce," J ordered. "You help me to stop Salamence, and I will forget about capturing Latias!"

"We have to do something! Flygon, stop Salamence quickly!"

"Pikachu, we need your help! Take down those Meteors!" Pikachu re-emerged, although slightly injured.

Pikachu looked up. "Pika-Pi," He said. "I can't reach them from here."

Flygon hatched a plan: "Let's make a deal. If we work together, we can defeat Salamence."

"Trust me," Flygon said. "I shall bring you two to Salamence."

Sylveon nodded, although Pikachu seemed distrustful of Flygon. Nevertheless, the two jumped on the Dragon's back, and they ascended. The cold wind rushed against their faces, as they nearly touched the clouds on top of the mountain.

"Pikaaaaaa," Pikachu began to growl. Sparks began to fly. Sylveon watched in awe, as Pikachu's two million volt Thunder erupted into the sky, and the clouds unleashed Thunderbolts which destroyed the meteors. Salamence, struck by the lightning, became agitated and flew away.

"Now it's my turn," Sylveon demanded.

"Fairy Lock!" She commanded. Her tassels shone pink, and Salamence started shining blue. Salamence suddenly crashed to the ground, unable to escape.

"Sylveon!" Don Satoshi's gruff voice shouted from below. "YOU NEARLY CRUSHED US!"

The trio descended, and Salamence roared at them. Suddenly, it charged forwards, unable to fly and hit Sylveon with a Steel Wing.

"He's turned his wings into swords," Ash watched in awe.

Pikachu fell to the ground, and Sylveon winced in pain from the super-effective attack. Salamence's Flamethrower sent Lucario back, and then the Dragon Pokemon pinned Flygon to the floor.

"Just how powerful is this Salamence? Why is it trying to kill it's own team mate?" Ash asked.

"He's not going to get tired any time soon. He's a Shadow Pokemon: all he understands is fighting."

That word was familiar- "Shadow Pokemon- _Cipher_."

Salamence raised his head up, and an orange ball suddenly appeared. They could feel the heat of the Hyper Beam from where they were standing.

"Even if Salamence has been weakened, it's Hyper Beam could kill all of us from here." The Hunter said.

"There's only one thing left to do." Her voice filled with steely determination as she cocked her arm-cannon at Salamence. The memory of her son had made her will falter. Did she want to lose her Salamence? Her… Partner?

"No!" Flygon cried.

"What choice do we have? He'll end up dead either way!" Ash said. A wave of darkness flooded over his soul. Don Satoshi was back in full force. He started moving back, uncaring for Salamence at this point.

Her hand shook- she couldn't tell if it was the cold or her nerves.

Latias rose to her feet, and floated.

"Laaaa-Ti-AAAAS!" The temperature dropped even further, and an Ice Beam struck Salamence in the side. Salamence roared, and fell over into the snow.

"Laaa!" Latias unleashed a Flamethrower, and the fire struck Salamence in the stomach. Flygon groaned and crawled out from underneath Salamence.

Salamence suddenly felt all of the pain in it's joints. From the previous battles, and the electrocution, as well as the fall from the sky. The fire, mixed in with the ice, made him realise the seething pain in his bones made him collapse. Hunter J said nothing.

The red ball sucked Salamence away. Pokemon Hunter J took one last look at Latias before scowling. Her moment of weakness was over.

"Ketchum," She said. "My Salamence was turned into a Shadow Pokemon. It can only feel anger: anger, and a desire for destruction," J explained.

"My employer from the Pokemon League was the one that did this. At first, I was astounded at the power boost Salamence received, but I felt as though this strength can't be trusted. Now I realise, just how dangerous this is."

"The reason my employer wants me to capture the Legendary Pokemon is so they can turn them into Shadow Pokemon as well. If they could enslave them, imagine the power they would have."

She shook her head. "I saw a flash of lightning around here. Was Ein here?" She asked.

Don Satoshi nodded grimly. "We defeated his Raikou."

"There's a big tournament being held in Kalos. In order to gather the strongest trainers with the strongest Pokemon, Ein wants to go there. They plan on capturing the best Pokemon, and turning them into Shadow Pokemon. My son is competing."

Don Satoshi grunted. "Yeah. That's the Master's Tournament, isn't it? We just so happen to be competing there as well."

J ignored him. "If you're serious about helping these Pokemon, and helping my son, then you must go there and protect everyone. I'm well aware that there are people who truly hate you, but you must save them from the League. Act in the shadows to protect the light: that is the way of the Hunter. If you'd like, I can take you to Kalos on my ship- but not a mile further. Come now,"

Flygon seemed reluctant to leave the battlefield. "What?" J demanded.

Flygon took a good look at her. Hunter J sighed, and pulled out a black Pokeball with what looked like a 'U' on it.

"Catch," She threw Flygon's Pokeball to Don. "She's taken a liking to you. It seems you have a ride, after all. Goodbye."

Part B:

The Tournament Begins! Reuniting with old Friends!

"You'll never win with Pokemon like that, Paul." A so-called pro trainer announced. Paul scoffed.

"You need an SBP: That's a Specially Bred Pokemon, which can learn more moves and use better attacks!"

Again, Paul scoffed. His black eyes and purple hair made him an intimidating foe, and his folded arms concealed his power and confidence.

The battle was Paul's Metagross against Iris' Dragonite. How he ended up in this situation was a mystery.

"Okay, Dragonite, let's end this with- erm,- Fire Punch!" Paul smirked.

"Wait for it," He said quietly. Dragonite closed in with a burning fist.

"Now! Quad Punch!"

Iris looked on in confusion. "Did you fail at saying Thunder-Punch, you little kid?"

No, he didn't. Iris had failed.

Metagross' eyes flared, and it span around, each of it's four arms glowing in a different colour. Meteor Mash, Thunder Punch, Fire Punch, and Ice Punch, on top of Metagross' spinning.

Metagross levitated, and all four fists struck Dragonite in the face.

"Dragonite!" Iris called out. "Get up!" She ordered.

"This battle is over. Metagross is the winner and Paul is the victor!"

Paul rolled his eyes and walked away, with Metagross following him.

"Hey, where you goin', Paul?" Cilan asked. "Away from here. Where else?" Iris flushed.

"Well, good! No one here likes you, you creep!"

"Whatever."

As he walked away from the fuming girl, Max and Brock caught up.

"That was pretty cool, Paul! You beat a Gym Leader's Pokemon in one attack- well, I mean, it was LIKE one attack, but it was actually- you know, never mind." Max rambled.

"Thank you. Teaching the Quad Punch to Metagross wasn't easy. Using just two moves at once is very stressful on a Pokemon, so I could only have done it one time."

Brock smiled and placed his hand on Paul's shoulder.

"I'm sure you'll do great in the Tournament, Paul. You've become so much stronger in just one year."

"Thanks Brock. I'll do my best, but I don't know who else is competing. The Regional Champions are one thing, but I heard that Brendan Emeralds is competing. They say he's the strongest trainer in Hoenn- if not, the world."

Max nodded furiously. "I can't wait! Brendan Emeralds used to live near us: he really was something else. He was stronger than Ash was."

At the mention of their old friend, Paul paused. His expression became unreadable. Brock turned quiet.

"You know," Paul mentioned. "I have a feeling we'll see Ash very soon. I don't know why, but, I get this feeling. I think his old Pokemon do as well. They say a trainer with a powerful Pikachu is going around in Kanto, after all."

Although it was morning in Kalos, it was twilight in the North.

In the Sinnoh region, Ash stared out over the ocean waters. He needed a _boat,_ or some aircraftnow, to get to Kalos with. Looking over the sea with him was Latias, the Eon Pokemon. She was still injured- Feraligatr had carried her down from the mountain. In the mean time, Ash had procured a spare Pokeball to keep her in, which he stole from one of the grunts on the mountain.

The various Pokemon who fought on the mountain under the grunt's control had been rescued. J seemed to have forgotten them. The four Metagross, although rough and impolite, were hugely helpful to Ash's cause. Many of them had left for the wild already, but others hadn't- now, Ash waited for one of Pidgeot's gang to take them away to Don Satoshi's sanctuaries.

"Latias," Ash asked cooly.

"Yes, Ash?" She cooed. The enigmatic face of Don Satoshi looked over the ocean. Unchanging. Still.

"Do you remember meeting me many years ago?" Ash asked. Suddenly his heart filled with a great weight. He didn't want to remember the adventures that used to seem massive to him.

Latias laughed a bitter laugh, "I thought you'd never ask," She smiled.

"I didn't forget… I wouldn't forget something like that."

Latias looked at him with a faint smile.

"I'm surprised you didn't. Compared to what you've been doing these past few years, I'm surprised you even consider it worth your time to remember," Latias suddenly giggled. _"It was your first kiss, though, wasn't it?"_ She said through telepathy. Finally, Ash's face turned red.

"No it wasn't!" He muttered.

"Pi?" Pikachu looked at him. Ash blushed again. " Oh, um, nothing, Pikachu… Carry on!" He said with a smile.

" _Weirdo,"_ Pikachu sniggered under his breath.

" _No matter how hard he tries to hide it, he's still that same Ash Ketchum,"_ Latias smiled.

"Hey Latias,"

"Yes, Ash?"

"Do you know about Arceus' condition?"

Latias froze. It was almost as though time stopped for her.

"… What happened to Father?" She asked. Suddenly, her tone was demanding.

Ash looked out to the water. Arceus was the one who made the world. He was the one that made Latias, and Pikachu, and all of the other things in the universe.

"Arceus called me to the Hall of Origin three days ago."

Latias looked at him coldly.

" _Go on,"_ Her eyes turned blue, and she went through Ash's mind to see if he was lying.

"Arceus told me he was dying because all the Legendaries were being captured."

Latias gasped in shock. "A-Arceus is _dying_ now?" Suddenly, she looked frightened.

"Ash… Why didn't you tell me this earlier?" She whimpered. Tears poured down her face.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't aware you didn't know," He said. Latias suddenly tried to fly.

"Wait, you're hurt!" He called out to her.

"It's okay," She said. "The time is right," She started counting something.

"Ash, how many stars can you see reflected in the water?"

Ash looked down. "I can see a few of them." Latias looked worried again.

"The stars represent how many Legendary Pokemon are out of control right now," Latias flew over the water. "Right now, Groudon, Kyogre, and Rayquaza are under someone's control. As are Reshiram, the Lake Guardians, Jirachi, the Regi Pokemon, and… Dialga and Palkia?"

Ash looked at her quizzically.

"Dialga and Palkia? Aren't they too powerful to be controlled by humans at all?" Latias nodded.

"A long time ago, Dialga and Palkia were sent to investigate the phenomenon on Earth. I suspect that they have found someone to trust in, and have accepted him as a trainer for now, until they can return to the Hall of Origin."

Ash thought things over for a minute. The Weather Trio. The Creation Trio. Sure, Raikou was one thing, but was it really comparable to Gods like Groudon and Dialga?

He thought about Ein's ramblings. J's words about Shadow Pokemon. If these Pokemon were anything like her Salamence was, then would his team be able to handle them? He shook his head: of course they would. They could handle anything, after all.

"I suspect they'll all be at the Tournament," Ash replied. "We can rescue them all in one fell swoop... If we're lucky.

He cast a crude fishing line into the water, and sighed. Pikachu had his own little fishing rod, too. Somehow, the one Pikachu made was of better quality than Ash's line.

The others weren't interested in fishing, but rested. They had trained all day for the upcoming tournament, and were tired. Craters steamed up from the ground around which they had trained. Larvitar had evolved into Pupitar, and was one step closer to being able to battle with the others in the tournament. The only one left was Larvesta- and Ash felt as though she was trying her hardest. The new team-mate, Flygon, was quiet, but was a brilliant fighter. She had to get used to the kindness and generosity of Ash's team, in contrast to her strict obedience to Hunter J.

Ash looked at the pile of fish they had amounted: although Ash had hooked three or four big fish, Pikachu had landed ten nice-looking ones. He crinkled his nose in envy, and resumed concentrating on the water. After they got one more fish, he decided that this would be enough food for their growling stomachs.

He prepared the dinner, and readied the fish. He gathered some vegetables to roast over a fire.

"Charizard?" He asked wearily. Charizard snorted, and from some embers, started a large campfire.

"Sceptile! Herbs!" Sceptile smiled, and dropped some plants at his feet. They were having an extravagant meal by their standards. Ash left the fish to marinate for a while. It was still early, he could leave it for a bit.

"Listen up," He ordered. "Come close. All of you." By this, he only meant his own team. They pushed a few logs around the camp site, until they were all visible around the fire. Charizard lay on his side, with his arm propping his head up, on the other side of the fire. Flygon floated above the others and Latias lay next to him. Pikachu and Sylveon sat near his lap. Pupitar, Sceptile, and Feraligatr listened intently. Lucario closed his eyes and listened carefully. Staraptor and Noivern watched him with respect. Larvesta stared at him from below the campfire.

"We are all going to enjoy dinner tonight," He lectured them. "By tomorrow, we will have arrived at the Master's Tournament. Today is November the Third,"

"When we get there, not only are we going to fight in enemy territory, but outside the ring- I can imagine Team Rocket will be running around everywhere. I can't have you battling with stomachs full of fish- I am going to feed you all the vitamins and nutrients that you will need to be at your best- because we'll need it." He thought about what to say next.

"This is a huge Tournament. Although I don't think it would be fair to start out by using our full power, by the later rounds, we will be in for the fight of our lives. Not one of us will emerge unscathed. This will be more difficult than anything we've faced before. Both spiritually and physically. Oh yeah, Champions from other regions will be competing in this tournament. Cynthia, Steven, Lance…Even the current Kanto Champion… Damien Michaels." Ash couldn't stop himself from hissing the word. Everyone gasped. Charizard growled in fury. Latias, having read his mind, felt sorry for Ash. Pikachu looked down, remembering their last defeat at the traitor's hands.

"But," Ash continued. "We can handle anything. A few days ago, Lucario, Sylveon, Staraptor and Pikachu took down six Psuedo-Legendary Pokemon, and one real Legendary- not to mention, an ugly Drapion on top of a frozen mountain." Lucario flushed with pride.

Staraptor spread his wings out boastfully. Pikachu smiled a little bit. Ash stretched his hand to the sky.

"Arceus is depending on us. All of those Pokemon are counting on us. So what do you say, let's give them hell!" They all cheered loudly. Charizard shot a streak of fire into the air. Noivern backflipped over the fire in excitement. Latias cawed in happiness.

That night, they ate like starved men, and slept under the stars like kings in a palace.

In the morning, Pidgeot had arrived with a crew of Wailord, who waited near the seaside. Flygon offered to give Ash a ride all the way to Kalos.

"It's an easy jog," She joked, much to Charizard's displeasure. The Flame Pokemon snorted and rolled his eyes at her. When asked why Flygon got to go first, Sceptile joked and said he would drown if he so much as got splashed by the waves.

The now freed Pokemon waved goodbye on the backs of the Wailord, and Pidgeot chuckled.

"We've come a long way, haven't we, Ash?" The Bird Pokemon smiled.

"We sure have," Ash was quiet. He was anxious at the thought of being around so many people. "Ash?"

"Hmm?" Don Satoshi suddenly appeared. The menace that Pidgeot knew was there in front of him.

"I'm not going to beat around the bush here. I'd like to join you in the tournament. Like when you were younger."

Don Satoshi scoffed. "Right. With you at the tournament, I'm sure our friends across the world will be safe," He sneered.

Pidgeot predicted this response. "I've already taken care of it. My flock is being handled by my loyal friends in the forest. Don't you worry, Don Satoshi, I am all yours."

Don grunted. "Very well," He said. "I hope you'll enjoy the flight, seeing as I have no spare Pokeballs for you."

"It's an easy jog," Pidgeot chuckled. Don Satoshi glared at him.

Then, it was time to go. Everyone except for Flygon, Pikachu and Sylveon returned to their Pokeballs, and they landed on Flygon. Ash tied his cloak up, and moved his hair from his eyes. Although he was scared a little bit, he was very excited deep down. Flygon's wings began to flap.

Would Silver be there? What about Paul, or Brock, or the old friends from the letter?

" _Maybe Dad will be there,"_ Ash thought. They were in the air. Pidgeot sailed coolly by them. The Wailord took off as well. Soon, the campsite became a tiny speck, and they saw the mountains behind them. They took off from Canalave City and went to the lands beyond.

The ocean expanded in front of them, and they could see the clouds above and beyond.

"It's so pretty!" Sylveon exclaimed. "I wish I could fly like you guys!"

They didn't say anything for the next few hours, as Flygon took them over the oceans. They marveled at what they could see, and then they realized that this was the price of their mission. The world they were fighting to protect.

Soon, a blimp came into sight. It was already one O'clock, and they had flown for three hours. More blimps were visible over the horizon. They were advertisers, promoting their businesses, on top of what Ash immediately recognized as the stadium. It seemed so alien to him: he had spent years fighting in the shadows, and now, it was time to face the light.

Had they always been this regal? No: none of the others looked anything like this one.

A majestic, town-sized stadium with a giant battlefield in the middle was filled with cheering people: trainers gathered in the middle of the field, filling it up to the max. Millions of fans filled the seats in the bleachers.

Connected to the main stadium, three 'smaller' arenas were linked. Each was the size of a castle!

One looked like a dome, and one looked like a palace. The third one looked like a theater, and the one in the center had the elements of all three. Ash's eyes gleamed with excitement.

"In the middle," He told Flygon. Were all the competitors were amassed. People were filing into the stadium very quickly.

Flygon dived down. Ash, Pikachu, and Sylveon all jumped down, into the crowds, and landed on the top of the stadium discretely. Nobody even knew he was there.

Flygon and Pidgeot landed next to their trainer, ready to support him no matter what.

Ash looked down, and scoured the competition. He was right: in the crowds were many trainers, but above all, a familiar head of purple hair, followed by a tall, impressive looking Infernape, with his hands in his pockets. Paul WAS here.

He looked around again and gasped. The massive Feraligatr was here too: and the trainer wasn't far off. Silver Ketchum.

"Pikachu, look," He whispered. "There's all kinds of people here." Some trainers looked young and inexperienced. Others looked like they had trained their whole lives for this day.

"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN," A voice called out.

Out came a tall man, with slick hair and huge muscles. He wore a white shirt and a black tie, and an orange coat, with brown trousers. His shoes were shiny and black, and they looked expensive. This was an official.

"I am Giovanni Sakaki, Head of the Pokemon League Association," He bowed. Applause filled the stadium.

"I am honoured to welcome you all to the Semi-Decennial Pokemon Master's Tournament! This will be the Tournament to end all Tournaments!"

Deafening applause sounded throughout the stadium.

"I see hundreds of trainers have come to take part in the Tournament. I am pleased to see so many talented battlers in my arena."

" _Of course you are,"_ Ash thought quietly. This man… Was he the real enemy?

"Well done in coming this far, but you have only begun to face the challenges required to be a Master. If you truly wish to be dubbed 'Pokemon Master', then you must at least reach the fifth and final round."

Suddenly, the trainers all murmured. They weren't Pokemon Masters yet? What about the invites?

Ash listened carefully.

Fifth round. That was when the League would find all the Pokemon worth capturing. 'Master' was a code word.

A few years ago, and he suddenly remembered that would have been him down there, had Damien never ruined his life.

"There can only be one True Pokemon Master- and they will receive all of our blessings. As many of you know already, a mansion is on offer to the winner of the tournament."

Their eyes gleamed with greed. A mansion- all to themselves.

"But you will have to face many trials to reach them! Not only are all of our Gym Leaders competing in our Tournament, but anyone who reaches the Second Round may contend with the Pokemon League's best trainers: yes, our League Champions!"

Suddenly, mist flooded the stadium. Out of the doors, appeared the Kalos Champion, Diantha.

"Ladies and gentlemen- Kalos Champion Diantha!"

Her Elite Four followed. Ash's eyes narrowed: Clement was in the Elite Four?

The blonde boy with the machines wandered smugly onto the stage.

"Ladies and Gentlemen- Unova Champion, Trip Urbs!"

Ash gasped. How did Trip become a Champion? How did he defeat Alder? He made a fist and vowed to defeat him, then and there.

"Sinnoh Champion- Cynthia Shirona!"

The Sinnoh Elite Four had a look of distrust on their face. Cynthia waved and smiled- all the men in the crowd swooned over her, as she rolled her eyes. Flint and Aaron seemed to be rather angry at something, Bertha was calmly waiting out the greetings, and Lucian was brooding.

"Remember," Cynthia whispered to them. "We aren't allowed to win this tournament."

"Hoenn Champion- Steven Stone!"

Ash watched the Hoenn Elite Four emerge. They were… Different.

Harrison, his old friend, was now in the Elite Four. Sydney, Drake, and… Norman Maple?

Ash frowned.

"Johto Champion, Lance Ryu!" The crowd cheered. Lance smiled a vicious smile.

Lance.

Ash's last meeting with the man wasn't pleasant. He remembered a Rocket hideout.

 _"You're too young to be here, kid. Dragonite, blast a hole in the wall so he can leave. Don't let me catch you here again!"_

Something wasn't right about him.

"And lastly… The Kanto Champion, Damien Michaels!"

The crowd lost it. They cheered even more so than before.

"DA-MI-EN! DA-MI-EN! DA-MI-EN!" They all roared. The arrogant boy sauntered in, and waved like a lunatic.

"Look at him, Lucian," Cynthia spat in disgust. "He thinks he owns this place..."

Ash looked at the Elite Four: Sabrina, Surge, Koga, and…

Misty.

Ash suddenly smirked deviously. Oh, he would enjoy defeating her.

He saw her smug grin, and her delicate waves to her fans. Oh, he was going to enjoy defeating her. All of them.

"Now, everyone," Giovanni drew their attention back to himself.

"Not only will you be battling to decide who the winner will be, but you will also be co-ordinating! We now have a Contest Round, where you will all Compete in Contest Battles. A good trainer is a skilled Co-Ordinator, too."

At this Ash couldn't care less. The stadium seemed to think otherwise, though: many of the competitors were in outrage. Although many were pleased with this, that did not sate the opposition.

"Now, give a round of applause to our Top Co-Ordinators!"

Another round of mist came in, and out came four girls.

There was Soledad of Pewter City, who waved and smiled- but she was immediately overshadowed by the next three who competed for attention.

May, Dawn, and Serena all came out.

Ash saw them and didn't believe his eyes. Were they the same people?

No, they couldn't have been: this girls were… More beautiful. He gritted his teeth. Suddenly, he felt a wave of a foreign emotion through his body. The same emotion he felt when Sceptile beat him in arm-wrestling. The same emotion as when Pikachu caught more fish than him.

It was envy.

He couldn't shake it. It made his head spin.

"..." He leered at them, wishing he could burn the stadium down with Charizard's might. Wishing he could reduce the facade they had put on to ashes, and return things to the way they were when he was a child. Before Damien.

Before he knew it, the meeting ended. Everyone left the stadium in a hurry, until only a handful of people stuck around. He was alone again.

"..."

"Ash?" Pikachu asked .

"Yeah?" Ash responded. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah." Ash turned around. None of the others wanted to say anything, for sake of disturbing Ash.

"Why don't you guys go and find us a nice place to camp?" He told Flygon and Pidgeot.

The two nodded in obedience and flew away. They wanted to make Ash happy.

Somewhat unnerved, Ash wandered out of the stadium.

As Ash left the battlefield, he saw the last person he wanted to see. In the tunnel that led to the lobby of the stadium, he saw the four of them, in one place.

"Ha, you should have seen his face, May! Your brother's such a freak!"

Shrill laughter emerged from the exit way. Three girls were laughing. Their faces were covered in all kinds of make up so that they could look good for the various cameras filming the event.

"Heh." Damien turned around and saw a strange looking kid. He (?) wore a cloak, and had long, black hair that covered his left eye. His face had a large scar running down it, and his eyes had this… Empty gaze in them.

Damien looked at his own pink shirt and coat, and his shorter hair. He felt intimidated by this other, shorter, boy, and nobody could do that to him in front of his girlfriends.

Ash looked at him. With his left eye concealed behind his hair, he glared at him.

Damien squared up to him, and his weak-looking Sylveon, and shoulder checked him.

He was shocked when the other boy pushed back. The smaller boy pushed him back, and almost caused him to lose balance. Damien rubbed his shoulder. He wanted the boy to know that he had done something wrong.

He was even _more_ shocked when the boy ignored the fact that he had pushed him, and kept walking forwards. Then, he stopped in his way.

"Resorting to violence to settle your fear. For a Champion, you are very weak."

Ash didn't need to turn around in order to see his reaction. He could hear the high heels moving; the three girls backing away from him. He could sense the anger pouring out of Damien's body.

"Who the hell do you think you are, talking to me like that? You know who I am- how dare you talk to me like that!"

Ash still didn't turn around. He smirked deeply.

"Well? Give me your name, or I'll beat it out of you!"

Ash stopped smirking. He turned his head.

"Don Satoshi. Soon to be a Pokemon Master. Who are _you?"_ He said in disgust.

He left the stadium. His eyes blazed with satisfaction.

"Pikachu,"

"We're going to have some fun here, too."

In the lobby was a purple-haired man.

"That was pretty brave of you," He said.

Ash turned to look at him. The Infernape by his side suddenly gasped in surprise.

"Well. It's been three years since you left."

"Even longer since we fought," Ash replied.

The flames of an old rivalry sparked up again.

"The lobby's packed with people. I'm staying in a villa, seeing as I'm now an 'esteemed trainer'. If you come with me, I can sign you up without a license."

"Certainly."

* * *

 **So... What do you guys think?**

 **Follow, favourite, and Review please! Any thoughts on the story, put them in there. If you have any cool ideas, feel free to write them in.**

 **I'll be back soon,**

 **SG3**


	6. The first of many reunions

**Seeking Freedom: Chapter VI**

 **Signing Up: Meeting with Old Friends**

 **So, about the Pairing: I have decided on it, based on what you guys think I should do, and I have reached a conclusion that will make everyone happy. Thanks to all of you for reviewing and following this story. I have decided to pair Ash with a group of 5 girls.**

 **So far:**

 **-Annabel**

 **-Serena (Can be removed)**

 **If you have any pairing suggestions, send them in!**

 **So, this time, Ash meets many of his old friends.**

 **Also: Happy (Late) Valentine's Day!**

* * *

Seeking Freedom: Chapter VI

Return: Round One.

Ash and Paul walked down the lobby, which was pristinely decorated and truly well kept for. A large fountain in the shape of each Champion's star Pokemon ornamented the lobby. Elevators carrying people up and down travelled the floors. They saw junior trainers scrambling across the lobby, and senior trainers barking orders at everyone. Paul sighed in pity for them. Then, he realised, the VIP counter was free. All of the others must have taken care of their sign-ups before hand. Paul approached the Nurse Joy operating the counter. "Hello, I am Paul Shinji. I'd like to recommend a trainer for entry into the tournament."

The nurse nodded. "Certainly. Since this trainer is a recommendation, all I need is his name." Paul sighed in relief. The crisis with Ash's license was a huge controversy for many months. Any further dispute and the League would have had Paul's license revoked too.

"His name is Ash Ketchum," Paul explained. The Nurse's eyes widened. "...But, please keep it a secret." Nurse Joy shook her head. "Even though he won't have to say his name until the second round, I'm not allowed to keep secrets. After round one, his name will be announced. Especially with the late presence of criminals," Ash frowned. He sighed. No luck.

"Anyway," Nurse Joy said. "I've put him on the roster now. He'll be fighting the third match against an Elite Four member, Misty Waterflower." Ash's eyes narrowed. He looked furious. Sylveon looked at him with concern. Ash could already feel Pikachu's cheeks sparking from inside the bag. "Thank you, Nurse Joy." Ash said. Coldly. "No problem. Best of luck."

The automatic doors opened, and then they closed after the two went out. The road outside of the stadium was grand, decorated with lights and exotic flowers. Although they were turned off in the daytime, they were still tantalising.

"Ash, are you going to be okay with battling Misty?"  
Ash stared coldly into the distance. "Of course."

"Aren't you upset about it? What if she recognises you?"

"It doesn't matter. She chose to follow Damien that day: that was her decision, not mine. I can't hold it against her. I'm not interested in pity or revenge, or any of that nonsense- but if they hurt me again, I won't spare any of those traitors."

Paul looked at Ash, with the eyes of a rival. He needed to ask.

"Where did you go after the trial three years ago?"

Ash was thinking of a response, "I went off on another journey," He told Paul.

Paul looked at him, slightly confused.

"A journey? You didn't have a license, though! You couldn't have gotten all the insurance, or received any badges!"

Ash laughed. "You don't need any of that stuff," He waved his hand to the side. The Sylveon behind him giggled. Paul looked at him curiously.

"Where exactly did you go?" He demanded.

"I've been all over the world, Paul. If I told you everything, we'd be here for days."

Paul wasn't the sort to take that as an answer. "Okay, then. How about this: did you get any stronger?" Ash yawned. He was feeling fatigued from the flight.

"Not really a trainer, now am I?" He said bitterly. Paul then realised just how badly the court case must have affected him all those years ago. This wasn't Ash Ketchum, but rather a hardened man.

Infernape quietly stared at his old trainer's face. It was different- unfamiliar to him, but he knew who it was: he would always recognise Ash, the trainer who taught him about love and teamwork. Then there was the Sylveon following him. He noticed that the two of them simply radiated power, the same Infernape did. The same way Paul did. Infernape came to a decision. Somehow, he was the same- yet completely different.

"Inferna-Ape-Ape!" The Fighting Pokemon tugged at his trainer's leg. Paul stopped to address his concern.

"What's wrong, Infernape?" Paul asked. Infernape gestured at Ash, who seemed humored at the conversation.

"Ash, Infernape wants to fight you." Paul said.

"A battle…?"

Infernape nodded. Ashrealised this could be worth his time. He wanted to see how strong Infernape had become: one of the Pokemon whom Gary had threatened to auction against his will, who had been waiting for three whole years to see him.

"Let's battle." Ash agreed. Paul noticed the cool, confident way Ash spoke. He wasn't an overexcited brat any more, but rather, a cool, collected individual: a master of his thoughts. Something about Ash seemed overly cautious. It was like he was protecting something deep down.

Infernape smiled in excitement. Paul seemed to pick up the pace. They changed course from the villa to the sparring battlefields. There was a large block of ten battlefields in one place. Each was identical: made from durable grounds, and with lines drawn at the halfway mark on each. It was many years since Ash had trained on them.

"Here we are," Paul stated. They each took a side of the pitch, with Ash on the right and Paul on the left.

"Infernape! Stand by for battle!" Paul shouted.

"Lucario, my friend, I chose you!" Ash stated. In a flash of blinding light, the Aura Pokemon emerged.

" _A Lucario? He's at a type disadvantage now, what's Ash thinking?"_ A hundred thoughts raced through Paul's mind. Did Ash forget how to battle whilst he was away?

"I don't doubt the ability of my friends, Paul. Strength and power are more important than type advantages!"

" _He's got enough faith in this_ _Lucario_ _to think it can defeat my Infernape."_ Paul ruminated. Ash wasn't the sort of person who simply believed that one particular type of Pokemon was stronger than others- he knew that hadn't changed.

" _I'll make the first move!_ _"_

"I'll start us off: Infernape, use Calm Mind!" Infernape closed his eyes, and a wave of power flowed through him. The flame on his head grew, and Infernape suddenly seemed stronger.

"Agility."

Paul's thought about how to react, and decided to start fighting. "Flamethrower!"

"Dodge… Then Iron Defense."

Paul gritted his teeth. Lucario flew over the ray of fire, and tensed his muscles. His body momentarily turned silver as he did so.

" _Lucario's Speed and Special Defence have both gone up… I'll have to boost Infernape's Attack..."_

"Don't give him an opening, Infernape! Close Combat, now!" He ordered. Infernape raced towards Lucario like a laser. Infernape swung his fists and launched a barrage of sharp kicks at Lucario. Lucario cautiously stepped back, and dodged each blow.

"Lucario, Agility again!"

"Not so fast! Infernape, Swords Dance!" Paul sharply commanded.

A group of illusionary swords appeared, and they clashed over Infernape's head, before combining into one, and returning into Infernape. Infernape roared, and his muscles expanded.

" _Paul must have taught Infernape a lot of new moves,"_ Ash thought.

"Lucario, Iron Defense!"

"Flame Wheel!"

The howling Infernape clashed with the silent Lucario, and sent the Aura Pokemon reeling backwards.

"Dammit, he's strong..." Ash whispered. " _Lucario, what percentage of your power are you using?"_

Ash asked through his Aura.

" _I'd say… Seventy percent of it."_

" _You're going to need more than that!"_

"Close Combat again!"

"Fight back!" Ash ordered. The fight was truly on now.

At once, the two began to clash: Ash's Lucario blocked the first punch, and made rapid strikes against Infernape. The two launched each other as far back as they could, not relenting or backing down. Lucario swung at Infernape's face, and hit him square-on. Infernape growled, and reeled back, before sweep-kicking and Fire-Punching Lucario straight in the stomach.

" _Now what are you using?"  
"I'm using as much power as I have right now." _Ash grimaced. Lucario's one-hundred percent may not have been enough. He knew Infernape had his Blaze ability- but Ash hoped it wouldn't come to that. If Lucario could end the fight _quickly_...

The Aura Pokemon had a similar thought. Lucario jumped backwards, and started focusing deeply. He had tested Infernape's strength, and decided to use his full skill. Using his martial arts, he flipped Infernape again, before spinning him around and throwing him in the air.

Infernape growled. Lucario closed his eyes, and started to glow. Lucario stomped his foot down, and Earthquake commenced. Infernape didn't have any time to react!

The Earthquake didn't stop. Soon, the earth began to shake, and Lucario was responsible for it. The wave of destruction expanded as Lucario willed it. Soon, it seemed as though Lucario was going to swallow everything in sight!

"Lucario!" Ash snapped. "Stop! You'll tear the entire city down!"

The tremor stopped as soon as Ash said that. Lucario looked down, somewhat ashamed of himself for getting carried away. He used his Aura sense to detect Infernape's life-force. Thank Arceus he hadn't killed the poor thing.

Paul's eyes widened. Lucario's Earthquake had not only been an effective attack on Infernape, but had torn up all of the battlefields! Paul knew how much money was wasted on them- this wasn't good at all.

Ash was on the opposite end of the spectrum: he was deep in thought.

" _If Lucario finished his full power Earth_ _quake, he could have destroyed_ _this_ _entire city_ _..._ _"_

Now that Ash had someone to compare himself to, he began to realise just how powerful he had become. " _How much power could we actually use in the Tournament?I know Paul will require my absolute limits, but what about the other trainers?"_ Ash wondered. He decided: it was time to test just how much power Lucario exert without alerting anyone in the surrounding area- regardless of the damages it could cause.

"Infernape! Are you alright?" Ash asked. Paul was kneeling on the floor, tending to him.

"He's fine… He used Protect at the last minute and saved himself," Ash smiled: his Infernape was still clever. Infernape rose again. Paul backed away. Suddenly, a crimson hue appeared around Infernape. Paul smirked.

"This battle is over, Ash. Infernape's using Blaze now." The battlefield heated up. The fire from Infernape seemed to almost drown out the sun. Infernape stood tall. Lucario folded his arms and observed the Blaze Monkey Pokemon's new power.

"Master," Lucario said. "I'd like to use my ultimate technique now." Ash nodded. "It looks like you'll need it, Lucario."

Lucario tensed his body. His ears floated up in the wind. His hairs stood up, as they flooded with power. Much to Infernape's surprise, a similar blue Aura appeared around Lucario's body. Both Pokemon were covered with bright cloaks of energy. "Well then, we'll just have to see who's stronger. I'll warn you now, Paul, this is Lucario's maximum power. We call this the Aura Limit."

Paul's eyes gleamed at the challenge. The final clash began between the two.

"Infernape! Flare Blitzl!"

An intangible mass of flames appeared around Infernape. The Fire Pokemon charged forwards, eyes gleaming with determination. "Lucario, use Focus Blast!" Lucario roared. The blue Aura flared to life, and Lucario raised his left arm to the sky.

The earth around Lucario split, and a gargantuan Aura Sphere appeared above his head. The Aura Field was sucked into the Aura Sphere, and Lucario threw it at last. By that time, however, Infernape was upon him: the Aura Sphere clashed with Infernape's Flare Blitz.

The two struggled against each other, but in the end, Aura Sphere gave way and exploded. Sylveon braced herself for the impact that was sure to follow. Both Pokemon were sent reeling back, and the force of the explosion uprooted several nearby trees. Neither trainer shielded their eyes from the explosion.

Soon, Lucario was standing over a fallen Infernape. Although Infernape was definitely more powerful, Lucario seemed to have enough stamina to continue standing. "Well done, Lucario. Return."

Ash looked at Infernape. The steaming crater in the center of the field obstructed his vision, but he could see Infernape. Paul was consoling his defeated Pokemon. "I'm proud, Infernape. Next time, we'll beat him good." Paul fed Infernape a Revive, and the Pokemon reawakened.

"Ash, you've become very powerful. I look forwards to battling you for real in the tournament."

Ash shook Paul's hand.

"Let's get going now. I'm sure Max will be dying to see you."

Ash blinked. "Max is here?" Paul nodded. "He's not competing, but he loves to watch the battles. He's like a walking Pokedex when it comes to competitive battling. Not to mention, your old pal Brock is working as a medic for the Tournament." Ash looked surprised.

"Brock finally achieved his dream of being a Pokemon Doctor, then?"

Paul looked at him. "Yeah. You'd know if you hadn't run away," Paul said.

Sylveon almost bit his leg off for that remark. Ash didn't say anything, but an ominous presence emanated from his form. Paul noticed that he had offended Ash in some way.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to insult you, Ash."

"..."

He walked with the silent Ash down the city roads, until they were away from the main part of the city. Large roads opened up. A private estate was across the road. As they crossed it, a speeding car almost crushed Paul. A honk sounded through the air as the car drove past. "Damn lunatic almost killed me!" Paul growled.

Sylveon coughed after fumes came out of the car exhaust. "You okay, Sylveon?" Ash asked. Paul realised that Ash still cared deeply for his Pokemon. Perhaps, from the looks of things, they were the only things he cared about anymore.

They walked through the gate. At last, the two of them reached a long street with many houses on it. These villas were very luxurious, and looked very costly. They were each tremendously large.

"I've rented a villa to stay in during the tournament. We have one extra room. Would you like to sleep in it?"

Ash thought about it momentarily. "We sleep outside, actually."

Paul looked at him queerly. "What, like a Pokemon?"  
"Exactly. Thank you for the offer, though." Paul sighed.

Paul reached the villa marked with '5', and knocked on the finely made door. He noticed, a red sports car was parked in the driveway. No one in the house had a car, so what was going on?

"Wait," Ash said. "What's that sound?" He asked. "I can hear shouting inside!" Paul exclaimed. He looked at the number plate on the vehicle: 84M1EN.

"Crap, that's Damien's car!"

Ash glared at the car. "How did he even overtake us...?"

Paul looked furious. "It must have been whilst we were battling!"

"What's he even doing here, anyway?"

Paul sighed. "Sometimes, Damien gets the idea that we're somehow friends. He bullies Max an awful lot, y'know."

Paul reached for his own card key, and unlocked the door. He barged into the villa, which was a complete mess. The potted plants in the entrance hall lay in ruin. The furniture had been knocked over, and the house reeked strongly of beer. In the living room, rug was covered in mud and filth, and the couches had all been kicked away and knocked over.

The gang was all here!

On one side of the room were the people Ash recognized as the victims. A boy with green hair and glasses- that was Max cowered in front of the wall.

A tall, darker man, with spiky hair put on a brave face and tried to stand up to the invaders. He knew it was Brock. He stood near to the entrance.

There were two girls whom he recognized as well: a girl with lavender hair and long sleeves- he realised that this was Annabel, from the Battle Frontier- and a fiery haired girl, whom he knew was Zoe. They both stood to the side, disapproving of the conflict, with their arms folded crossly. Annabel looked… Different than Ash had cared to remember. Her hair had grown out. She radiated some kind of comforting Aura.

On the other side, was the old gang: Misty May, Dawn, Serena, Iris, Cilan, Trip, Leaf, Clement, Bonnie, and Damien himself. The traitors had made themselves at home nicely. Ash made a fist, and growled at them.

"Oi. You there. You're that dweeb from the stadium!" Damien pointed out. "Did ya come here to apologise? 'Cuz I ain't buyin it!"

"Just what are you all doing here? Breaking and entering is a crime, you know!" Paul shouted. They flinched at his menacing tone, but then responded with more anger.

"Well, Max just let us in so, you need to back off, Paul!" Misty yelled.

"Yeah! Wait, who's THAT?" Dawn pointed at the man standing next to Paul.

"Your boyfriend got a name, Paul?" They all laughed at Damien's crude joke. Damien himself laughed heartily."Hey Max, come 'ere. I want to smack you again."

"Do it, I'll give you my drink!" May chortled. Ash looked at her, completely astounded. This wasn't the same May Maple. It couldn't be! The make-up from earlier was ruined- especially her lipstick. She looked like a Mr. Mime under confusion. Dawn was in a similar state, except her dress was slightly tattered by Damien's hands running all over it.

However, as soon as Ash looked at Serena, he didn't believe it was her. She was so much more beautiful than Dawn and May. Whilst everyone cheered Damien on, Ash was fixated on his former best friend. Everything about her was different, but she was still Serena Gracia. She was sat in Damien's lap, and suddenly, that same emotion from earlier flooded through his veins. Envy.

The chaos ensued, and Damien took another swig, this time from May's drink. Serena had a faint smirk on her face, and looked around. Ash averted his gaze to the floor. Serena looked at him for a few seconds before looking back to Damien. Something about him was… Familiar. Ash drew his attention back to the scene before him. Ash watched as Damien stood up and marched towards Max, and raised his hand in the air. Max flinched. "He's not actually going to hurt him, is he?" Ash whispered to Paul. Paul simply gave him a strange look that told him otherwise.

A resounding slap echoed throughout the room. Ash glared at Damien in anger.

Max was crying, and his glasses were on the floor. Damien pinched his cheeks and forced him to look up to him. Don Satoshi's cruel sense of torture washed over him. Sylveon gulped when she noticed he had 'transformed': this never ended well with people around.

"You gonna say something, boy? Are you? Huh?" Damien taunted. "Heh,"

"What are we going to do about him?" Paul whispered to himself. Ash was furious at Damien for hurting someone who couldn't defend himself.

Out of the blue, Ash hatched a cunning plan. Don Satoshi, protector of peace, decided to put things right. With an evil smirk on his face, Ash quietly exited the villa. He went outside into the driveway. Infernape, realising he had left, followed him to the road. Ash was going to do something he had wanted to do to Damien for a long time. Damien was about to suffer. This wasn't about revenge, however: Paul wanted Damien to leave, and Ash was going to make him do so.

"Oh, hey," Ash said. Sylveon waved with her foreleg, and skipped across the driveway. Infernape watched him. He didn't look at Infernape, but seemed to be searching the ground for something. Ash dropped on his knees. Suddenly, Pikachu appeared out of the bag he was carrying.

"Find me a big pebble or something. Something I can throw..." Sylveon nodded and went to work. Pikachu glanced around. Infernape spotted a pebble at his feet. He picked it up and gave it to Ash. Pikachu noticed Infernape and waved at his old companion. Infernape gave him a jovial smile. He fisted bumped the yellow mouse.

"Thank you! It seems you're as good-hearted as ever," Ash smiled innocently. With the pebble in hand, Ash aimed for the bright red car, and threw it as hard as he could. Infernape gasped when he saw the damage. The rear screen cracked. Glass spilled all over the driveway, and Ash smiled at the havoc before walking back into the house, and Pikachu returned into the bag.

"Excuse me," Ash said. Very politely, Ash had said it. Damien was back on the floor, between Dawn and Serena, with May in his lap. The others were taking turns to pick on Max. The poor boy was in worse state than Damien's car.

"Something has happened to your car. I think perhaps you might want to look at it?"

Damien's eyes narrowed into slits. "What the hell happened to my ride? That thing was expensive!"

He stormed out of the house, with his posse following behind him. A large scream could be heard, followed by a lot of shouting, and… hammers? Ash shut the door behind the last traitor.

"Clementic gear on!" Was the last thing he heard before the sound of squealing tyres filled the air.

"What happened? Is everything okay out there?" Paul asked the two of them. If Damien was angry, Paul feared what he could do. Infernape stopped himself from laughing at the situation. Ash shrugged his shoulders in amusement. He put on a coy smile. "Who knows?"

Paul sighed. "Alright, let's clean this place up. Then we can introduce you."

Ash helped to clean up. Brock started cleaning the rugs, and Zoe put the sofas back in place. Annabel looked after Max, who seemed to be badly hurt. After the villa was back in order, Paul got everyone to sit down.

"So, I think introductions are in order," Paul slowly began. "Introduce yourself," He told Ash.

He was curious. What was Ash going to say? How could he justify his absence? What would everyone else say? They all looked at him with a curious stare.

"… Hey," Ash said. He waved at them.

"Maybe you remember me… Maybe you don't," Ash opened his messenger bag.

"My name's Don Satoshi, but you might know me better as Ash Ketchum. This is my best friend, Pikachu."

The Electric Mouse leaped into his lap. Now that Pikachu was there, they recognised him, and they all lost their breath. Although his cheek was scarred, they could make out the lightning mark on his face. His eyes were the right colour. There was no mistaking it: Ash was alive in front of them. Max was the first to regain his breath. He leaped up and gave him a hug.

"Ash! You're alive! Oh, I knew it, I knew it!" Max beamed brightly. Pikachu was squashed in between them, and a sudden jolt told Max he had to back off. "Hey, Pikachu!" Max beamed.

"Ash… Look how tall you've become!" At once, Brock's instinct as a brother and as a doctor flared up. He suddenly grabbed Ash's hands and started berating him.

"You're hands are so calloused… What have you been doing all this time, digging tunnels? Your nails need cutting, you've got scars on your hands. Look at your hair! You know you can get ill from not cutting it?" Ash really didn't know what to say. Now, Annabel was looking down at him. "Oh gosh, when was the last time you WASHED it? That's disgusting! Do you know lice can- IS THAT A FEATHER IN YOUR HAIR?" Zoe giggled at their antics.

"Alright, sit down now. We can give Ash a bath later." Paul sighed. Max settled down. Once again, Zoe was on his side. "Paul. Tell us how you found Ash," Paul began to explain.

"I found Ash at the opening ceremony. He insulted Damien to his face, and the dummy didn't even recognise him. Ash here isn't telling me anything about where he went, or what he did whilst he was away. All I know is that he caught a few more Pokemon, and that's it!"

"I also broke Damien's car," Ash grinned. Paul suddenly wanted to SCREAM, but held it in. Brock crossed his arms, and gave Ash a hard stare.

"Well Ash, I think you owe us an explanation! We spent three years looking for you, after all. It's unfair for you to keep secrets from us!"

Ash glared at him. "Please, Ash." Annabel begged. "We are all concerned about you!"

Ash said nothing, but after a few seconds, he sighed. "After what happened in Pallet Town, I thought about things deeply. The Pokemon League framed me for a crime, for no obvious reason. I didn't know why, so I decided to run away until I figured out the answer."

Annabel nodded. Brock gestured with his hand, telling him to go on. "After one month of going around Kanto, I confirmed my new theory that Team Rocket and the Pokemon League were working together. Smuggling Pokemon and weapons, and the sort."

To his surprise, they all nodded. "Scott told us about this. At first, I thought he was kidding, but it looks like he was right." Zoe said.

Ash nodded. "It's not just Team Rocket. Team Aqua, Team Magma, Team Galactic, Team Flare, and Team Plasma are all fused together at the top ranks- but not the bottom. That's why they all seem to act separately."

Zoe gasped. Brock was clearly alarmed by this. "All of the evil in the world comes from the Pokemon League?" Ash nodded.

"The reason I was framed for breaking into Oak's lab all that time ago, was because the Pokemon League was doing it's latest publicity stunt. After our battle at Indigo Plateau, the League decided that my suffering would be good for Damien's reputation, and boost him to new heights. Not to mention, I was in the way of Team Galactic and Team Plasma when I was in Sinnoh and Unova."

Annabel looked shocked. "So, framing you and stealing your Pokemon was just a game for Damien?" Ash looked away. "Yeah, that's all it was to him." He sounded upset.

"Ash, I'm so sorry for you. I can't believe he did that to you." Zoe said to him. Ash sighed.

"It wasn't your fault. I'm sorry to have worried all of you just as much."

Brock looked at him with a stern eye. "At any rate," He said. A tear of joy appeared. "At least you're alive."

Max still wasn't satisfied. He began to bombard Ash with questions. "So, what happened after that? Where did you go? Did you get any cool new Pokemon?" He asked.

"Max!" Brock chided. Ash frowned, remembering all of his hardships under the guise of Don Satoshi. All of the gruelling battles, all of the horrors they faced. The bloodshed that kept him awake at night.

"After that, I tried to fight Team Rocket. They wiped the floor with all of us, but I knew I couldn't just sit back and wait: I used my head, and made a plan to rescue all of the Pokemon they captured, and I freed them. The Pokemon I freed decided to taught me real battling, and I learned to fight by myself as well. We gradually got stronger, and stronger, until we became so powerful that not even Hunter J could defeat us."

Paul's jaw dropped in disbelief. "Hunter J's team is as strong as Cynthia's! How… How powerful have you become?" Ash shrugged.

"That's why I came to the Tournament," Ash explained. "To find out if I'm finally better than the Pokemon League," He finished, "If I'm stronger than Damien. This is the end of my three-year journey."

Zoe put her hands against her heart. "That's really brave of you, Ash."

Annabel gave him her hand. "I know you two will both do well in the Tournament. Best of luck to both of you," She said.

Ash grasped at it. Annabel realised how thin and cold his hands were. Like branches on a tree in Winter.

" _He's been living in the wild for three whole years._ _No wonder his hands are so boney._ _"_ She felt a great admiration for Ash now. " _He's a hero,"_ She thought.

Brock nodded solemnly. "Well, Ash, if you're competing in the tournament, I'd suggest you do as much training as possible. Why don't we introduce our Pokemon? Your old Pokemon have missed you even more than we have!" He smiled and unfolded his arms.

Ash smirked. They all went to the back of the house. Paul opened the door to the garden, and there was a large number of Pokemon, all undergoing tough training. Some he recognised as Brock's, some as Paul's, but some were definitely his Pokemon!

" _Flygon, Pidgeot, come over here! You've got to see this!"_ Ash told them through his Aura.

"Alright everyone," He smirked. "Let's come out!" A rain of Pokeballs released all of Don Satoshi's team. Sceptile, Charizard, Feraligatr, Noivern, Pupitar, Staraptor, Lucario, and Larvesta appeared. After a few minutes, Flygon and Pidgeot descended from above. Ash had his reservations about sending out Latias, so he simply kept her Pokeball in the bag.

"Woah, Ash, your Pokemon look really powerful!" Max eyed them in awe. He saw the white insect Pokemon on the ground and gasped. "A Larvesta! How did you find one of these?" Max ran forwards, eager to pet Larvesta.

"Wait, Max!" Ash cried. Suddenly, Larvesta hissed, and launched a Flamethrower at Max. Max gasped, this time in shock. Ash pushed him out of the way, and took the Flamethrower instead.

"Ash!" Brock called out. They all circled him in concern. "Are you okay?" Annabel frantically asked. Ash looked at them, perplexed. "Of course. Why wouldn't I be?

"You just took a direct Flamethrower to the chest!" Brock pointed out. Ash blinked.

"Oh, right. No, I'm fine. Her Flamethrower doesn't hurt me. She's burned me so many times, I sort of grew used to it. If it was from this guy," He gestured to Charizard, who looked at the humans with distrust. "Then I'd be in trouble."

Brock smiled when he say the Flame Pokemon. "Hey, Charizard! It's been ages! How are you?" Charizard growled. Charizard turned around and stormed off. Then, all of the others decided to do the same thing. They sauntered off into the garden, looking for a place to stay.

"I'm sorry about him, Brock," Ash quietly said. "After everything that happened three years ago, they don't trust other humans at all. Especially not Charizard. Damien's hurt Charizard more than he's hurt me."

Brock smiled. "It's understandable. After all you guys have been through…"

Max looked earnestly at Ash. "I'm sorry I scared Larvesta, Ash. I didn't mean to."

"It's okay. She's never even talked to another human apart from me." Annabel watched Larvesta, scuttling away with the other Pokemon. "Ash, do you know how rare Larvesta are?"  
Ash shrugged. "Not really."  
"They're the rumoured to be one of the rarest and hard to raise Pokemon in the world. Only one trainer in the world has one that's fully evolved, and that's the ex-champion of Unova."

"What about Legendary Pokemon?" Ash asked.

"In the past, it's said that certain people commanded the powers of the Legendary Pokemon with machines. No legends speak of taming Larvesta."

He looked at the little Larvesta, who suddenly seemed to be isolated from Lucario and Pupitar. He realised, that since they had both evolved, she wasn't their equal any more. Her red spikes seemed to droop a little bit, and her blue eyes reflected a sense of loneliness that Ash knew too well.

"Hey guys! Look who it is!"

Ash turned around. An orange Pokemon with a black shell appeared before him, and tears came down from his eyes. "Torkoal!" Ash smiled. "Toorkoal!" The Smoke Pokemon responded. It turned his head around and yelled. "Come here,everybody! Look who it is!" He called out. Then a big Pokemon with a ring of petals around her neck appeared. "Meganium!" Ash suddenly remembered. Then, they all appeared: Glalie, Venasaur, Donphan, Torterra, Snorlax, Tauros, Blastoise, Tauros, Noctowl, Swellow, and Corphish. Ash's team watched in the distance, slightly put off by their master's amity with these new Pokemon.

Annabel's Pokemon looked equally powerful: Espeon, Metagross, Alakazam, and Mismagius all watched from close by.

"Ash," Paul smiled at him. "If you want any of them back, you can just ask." Ash sighed.

"No, Paul. They're your Pokemon now. I can't take them from you."

Ash stood up and whistled to his own team.

"Everyone, we're going to train now. Be nice and don't disturb the others, okay?"

They all nodded. Ash's Pokemon began to train viciously hard against Paul's team, who were each brutally powerful in their own way. Annabel's Pokemon joined in, battling whenever they could, although they had a hard time keeping up with Ash's Pokemon. The others watched the two powerful trainers at work. Ash's old Pokemon (the ones Paul didn't train) were astonished by how powerful Ash had become. Ash called Larvesta over to his side. He looked at his old friends, Swellow, Corphish, Noctowl, Gigalith and Torkoal, Blastoise, and Tauros.

"Hey, do you guys want to train again, just like we used to?" He asked them. His old Pokemon smirked. "Larvesta needs some help in getting even with the others."

"'Hey, hey, it's about time!" Corphish grinned. "It would be an honour to train with you again!" Blastoise roared.

Ash smirked. "Okay, but Larvesta is going to join us, okay?"

First, they warmed by doing a run. Ash was the fastest- not even Pikachu, who was training in the distance could beat him at top speed. All of the others followed him, without complaining.

After that, they trained their accuracy: Ash kept glancing back to Larvesta, seeing if she could do it. At first, she struggled with aiming her Fire Blast attacks. "No, no, no." Torkoal told her.

"The more energy you put into it, the more violently it explodes. You need more energy than muscular strength, but not too much more, otherwise you'll go flying backwards."

After a few minutes, Ash put up the last set of targets. Larvesta seared each one of them perfectly.

Then, they trained their defences. Noctowl taught Larvesta how to use her Extrasensory to distort attacks. They were all tired, but they kept going through all the different stages. Sweat was pouring down Larvesta's head. By the time the sunset, she was exhausted. Ash was tired too. After the speed training, he found himself out of breath. The other Pokemon, though, looked ready to pass out.

"One last thing to do, Larvesta," He said. The Torch Pokemon looked at her master wearily.

"Don't let your guard down." Blastoise lifted her up over his head. Ash's words rang through her brain. "Don't let your guard down..." She repeated. Blastoise cried out when she used Wild Charge to disarm the Shell Pokemon.

Ash was at last satisfied. Larvesta had definitely become more powerful. Suddenly white flames surrounded Larvesta. She was evolving!

In a blinding flash of light, Ash looked at his friend's new form. Volcarona, the Sun Pokemon, stood forth, with red wings and blue eyes. She roared, and spat out a streak of bright red flames.

"I'm so proud of you, Volcarona!" The Sun Pokemon cooed. She had waited a long time for those words.

The sun had finally set. Training ended. Ash recalled all of his Pokemon, since they were so tired, except for Pidgeot, whom he needed to guide him back to his campsite.

They all sat down inside. Ash caught up with the others, and how they had been over the past three years. They gasped when they heard about Ash's stories.

"Speaking of beserk people, do you know who Ash's first opponent is?" Paul smirked. "He's facing Misty."

Brock scoffed, and Max laughed. "Give her what she deserves, Ash! Don't go easy on her!" Max ordered. "I will, Max. I'll really make her regret what she did to me. It's getting late now, perhaps I should get going."

"Why don't you just sleep here, Ash?" Annabel asked. "We'd love to have you over." Paul started laughing.

"What's so funny, Paul?" She demanded to know.

"You seem awfully keen on having him here, Annabel." The Salon Maiden turned bright red.

"No, I'm not! I just thought it might be easier for him!" She snapped. Paul raised his hands defensively.

"I'm sorry to leave you guys, but we'll see each other later. Goodbye!"

For the first time in a long time, Ash was happy. They all waved him goodbye, and Ash left them. He was smiling, Pikachu noticed.

They had made the right choice.

* * *

In the night, in depths of Stadium D, Giovanni sat at the head of a long table. His hands were joined, and his elbows were on the table. One by one, the Pokemon League VIPs walked in. First was the enigmatic Tobias. He wore a black scarf with a red coat and trousers, and a black shirt.

Tobias also had a look of paranoia.

"Tobias Takuto, ready and present." He stood to attention.

"Take a seat," Giovanni ordered. Next, was Brendan Emeralds.

"Brendan Emeralds, ready and present." Giovanni nodded.

"Sit down."

The next person in made him smile. Silver, with his Team Rocket coat.

"Silver Sakaki- Ready and present." Giovanni smiled.

"Sit down, Silver."

"Father, I have some urgent news!" Silver chided. Giovanni stared at him blankly.

"It can wait."

Next was the red-haired Champion of Johto. Lance Ryu entered, with a proud smile.

"Lance Ryu- Ready and Present."

"Sit down, Lance. Good to see you decided to stay in our little circle of friends. Have you asked Cynthia if she would like to join our group of misfits?"

Lance shook his head. "Not yet, sir. I think she's displeased at our plans for letting Damien win the tournament." Giovanni sighed.

"What a shame, what a shame," He said. "She's pure-hearted: I don't know if I could even convince her of such a thing, Lord Giovanni."

"Things are only impossible when you let them be, Lance."

A man in a lab coat walked in. "Chief Ein, reporting in."

Giovanni waved, and Ein took a seat. After him came the most intimidating of the bunch.

A tall man with blue hair and dark glasses over his eyes walked into the meeting room with the monochromatic table. He simply overpowered the others in terms of appearance and status.

"Take a seat, Ardos."

Ein looked at his former boss, who was now his peer- although he didn't think that way at all- with a look of pride. The biggest and strongest baddie in the room was a Cipher agent.

Lastly was Damien Michaels. Covered in lipstick and reeking of cheap booze. The others scoffed at his appearance.

Giovanni sighed. "Take a seat Damien."

"Right," Damien agreed. He sat down, and swung on the chair. "So, what's this about a Super Pokemon I hear being developed?" Damien mentioned. They all groaned, barring Ardos, who simply cast Damien a stare which nobody could see.

"How on earth did you know about that?" Giovanni exclaimed.

"I'm Damien Michaels. You can't keep secrets from me. Also, some trash-head broke the window in my car. Had to ride my Arcanine home instead. I want him found and killed."

Silver ignored him. "Lord Giovanni, I have important news: Don Satoshi was seen exiting the Master's Tournament. Now is our chance to kill him!"

At this Giovanni's eyes widened. Tobias closed his eyes and crossed his arms. Ein growled in fury.

"That Don Satoshi… I'll kill him on sight!" Ein roared. Ardos decided to speak at last. His voice was gruff and deep. Yet he spoke very gently.

"This Don Satoshi character, who is he? Is he a nuisance to you, Giovanni? Give me a photo of him and we shall destroy him."

"Don Whatsit? Hello, can we get back to my question here?" Damien waved his arms up and down.

"Right, right… Don Satoshi is a paltry concern of mine, so do not worry Ardos."

"Paltry threat?" Silver exclaimed.

"Anyway, regarding our future development: our Super Pokemon, as Damien puts it, is currently undergoing it's last testing phase. Everything seems to be working better than we had hoped. When we finish our mission, this Pokemon should have enough power to help us create a new world. Tobias, seeing as you are the one I trust most, I'd like you to do the honours of using this Pokemon in the tournament."

Tobias nodded. "Yes, Lord Giovanni."

Silver growled. "Hang on. Why does he get to use our project? I was the one that re-captured it, wasn't I? That's unfair!"

Damien put his hands against the table. "Gentlemen, Silver makes a fair-" He hiccuped. "...Point. Y'see, I think I should use this Pokemon."

Silver leered at him angrily. "Why's that?" He demanded. "Because I work harder than you. Also," Damien smashed his drink against the table. They all heard the loud crash.

"If I don't get it, some secrets may just..." The wine trickled off of the table. "Spill out," Damien grinned. Suddenly, all of the others looked ready to murder him. "DAMIEN! HOW DARE YOU SPEAK LIKE THAT?" Giovanni roared. The boss' eyes blazed with fury.

"Very well then! Have it your way, you petulant brat!" Giovanni snapped. He reached into his coat, and a purple Pokeball with the letter 'M' came out of it. "Glad you see things my way, boss-man." He said coolly.

" _A Master Ball..."_ Silver fathomed. Giovanni rolled the ball across the table, and it landed in Damien's arms. "Sheesh, calm down. Don't get too excited- you might die, Pops!" Damien chuckled. "Meeting adjourned, meeting adjourned." He told himself. The others watched him leave the room with far more swagger than he deserved.

"Shall I kill him, dad?" Silver asked. "No," Giovanni said. "Meeting adjourned indeed. I'll see you all at the tournament."

The League Embassy all got up and left. Giovanni sighed, and leaned back in his chair.

"What to do about Don Satoshi..." He muttered. He pressed a button on the nearby remote. Suddenly, the wall behind him opened up. Mist came out of the opening, and the room became cold.

"Red Ketchum," He said. "What ARE we going to do?" The tall, brown haired man said nothing. "This Don Satoshi will fall by your hands."

Giovanni smirked. "I predict that this will end similarly as it did for you, Red. When I capture the Legendary Pokemon, you will open another Ultra-Wormhole for me, and you will bring all of the Ultra Beasts down to Earth. Then, nobody will stand in our way as we attain the ultimate power."

"..."

* * *

Ash finally set up his camp-site. A small fire lit up the dark skies. Charizard and the others had all fallen asleep. Only Ash was awake. He looked at the stars, and thought about battling Misty.

" _What happened to you, Mist? Why did you abandon me like that? I thought we were friends..."_ He thought. He planned on thoroughly humiliating her in the way he best could. Out of all of his Pokemon, he decided to taunt Misty by using a Pokemon that she would clearly seem to win against. For this, he chose Volcarona. It would be her first battle as an evolved Pokemon, and he couldn't wait to see her true power emerge. He hoped that maybe he could teach her a lesson as well.

" _Pst! Ash!"_ Ash shot up. His eyes darted around. "Who's there?" He snapped. Sceptile's eyes groggily opened- he was usually the watchman, and previous instinct told him that he should get up during situations like this. Perhaps, death was indeed worth it when it came to getting enough sleep.

" _Don't bother searching for me. You'll never find where I am."_

Suddenly, a pink bubble dropped down from above. The pink bubble silently popped, revealing a pink, feline Pokemon. "What the...?" Ash muttered.

"I'm Mew, don't you remember?" The New Species Pokemon floated in front of him. "Arceus told me I had to bring you a gift, so I brought myself, and did a little bit of haggling with the universe, picky thing."

"Oh," Ash replied. "Is now a good time?" He asked wearily. The Psychic Pokemon winked at him, and flew up and produced an ancient-looking Pokeball, which was pink, and covered in the pattern of DNA strands. Mew floated upwards, and twisted around in mid air, juggling the Pokeball.

"It would be a shame if I dropped this Pokeball at the Pokemon League's feet, y'know. Maybe I'll do just that," The Legendary Pokemon smiled.

"Wait!" Ash cried. Then he remembered everyone was asleep. Mew laughed. "Catch me if you can!" Ash gritted his teeth, and darted into the forest in search of the Psychic Pokemon. He saw Mew drop a trail of gold behind itself as she soared into the air. Ash climbed into the treetops and looked for her.

" _Where'd it go?"_

"Nwee hee hee!" Mew cawed. "You'll never catch me!" Ash growled. He looked below him- not there. He looked back- not there. Mew seemed to be hiding, but he couldn't see at all in the dark.

 _"I'll give you a hint,"_ She taunted. " _Use those Aura Powers of yours. I am here to train you, after all."_ Ash took a deep breath. He could sense it- the life presence of all the trees. Of the people in the city, who radiated red Auras. Of the plants, which were blue, and of his friends which were green. Then there was Mew, the pink Aura, hiding on top of a moving object somewhere.

" _It must be a truck!"_ Ash decided.

He didn't know how to describe it- were colours really the right words? Ash didn't know. Was Mew really there? He took the risk. He leaped over the trees, until he reached the end of the forest. He jumped as far as he could, and landed kneeling on the truck. His cloak fluttered behind him as the intense air resistance threatened to push him off.

"You'll never catch me at that speed," Mew said sweetly. "Let's go for a climb!" Mew decided to bounce up and down on it's long tail.

"Boing, boing, WOAH!" Mew suddenly rocketed up into the sky, landing on the top of a skyscraper. "Catch me if you can!"

Ash moaned. "If only YOU could do this, huh?"

Ash stayed on top of the truck. Mew didn't budge one bit. " _Going for a ride?"_ Mew taunted him. Ash ignored her. He tapped into his Aura Senses - the Mew on top of the skyscraper was a faker. The real one was under the truck. Ash grunted in fury. How was he going to catch her?

" _Tee-he-he-he!"_ She laughed. Ash gritted his teeth. What to do, what to do?

"Ash, I'm waiting!" Mew taunted. Ash sighed, it looked like there was no choice. He jumped down from the top of the carriage, to the connector between the vehicle and the load.

"What in the devil...?" The driver wondered. Ash clung on for dear life, as the driver pulled over sharply. Mew squealed as she was flying from underneath the truck.

" _Gotcha!"_ Ash thought triumphantly. He chased Mew down the midnight streets- he was faster than Mew, and the Mythical Pokemon knew it. Her eyes began to glow blue, and a flash of light caused her to vanish.

"No way!" Ash snapped. With micro-seconds to spare, Ash's eyes also began to glow. He suddenly warped, along with Mew to the top of another, taller building. This time, it was a hotel. The top of the hotel had a pool, and a vending machine. Ash grabbed Mew, and pinned her to the ground. "I win!" He declared. Mew sighed.

"I guess," She muttered. "This is yours, Ash." She rolled the Pokeball to him. "Your bravery in chasing me had absolutely no limits. Therefore, I'll teach you a new skill."

"Here: you almost did it just then. It combines your Aura Senses with your actions. If you detect anything with your Aura, you will be able to coordinate a response to it. Not to mention, you can teach this skill to your Pokemon. Let's practice," She said. "Can you sense those concentrated Auras in the distance?"

Ash focused. Deeply. Suddenly, they were there. Red. They were people.

"Yes," He said. Mew smiled. "Now, focusing on that Aura, do the opposite: consider the world around the Aura. You'll find it's very simple." Ash found this difficult, but in the end, he finally did it.

"It's a boat," Ash said in awe. "Yep," Mew said. "Remember that boat. On there are two professors: Professor Sycamore and his associate, Professor Kukui. They both have valuable insights for you." She finished. Mew floated away into the horizon.

"Hang on, how am I supposed to get down?" Ash snapped. "I don't know," Mew shouted back. "You'll find a way. You always do!"

On top of the hotel, Serena had the strangest dream. She couldn't tell whether it was pleasant or not. The dream made her happy. It fulfilled her deepest and most secret wish. Damien, her boyfriend of three years, who had screwed around with her feelings in such a way that made her why she fell in love with him in the first place.

 _At last, she was finally getting married to Damien. He had made up his mind to only marry her. Dawn and May were in the crowd, happily applauding her as well._

 _Suddenly, Damien's face turned into one of nightmares. The people he had cheated, and all the people he had been rude to suddenly appeared out of his jaws. The reception was set alight. Everyone slowly vanished, until suddenly a boy appeared and killed Damien. The boy was the same one from the stadium. The first and only person to have ever stood up against Damien's cruelty. His mane of unruly black hair concealed his face from her._

 _"Oh, my savior," She thought._

 _"Serena," He said. He turned his head to look at her._

 _"... Why did you let Ash down?"_

At once Serena shot up and gasped. Tears poured down her face, and she was crying. "Serena?" Dawn moaned. May switched on the night-light, and clambered to sit up.

"Serena, what's wrong?" May asked her friend. She shook her head. "Serena, come on! You've gotta be ready for tomorrow!" Dawn pleaded.

"What the hell's going on, ya bitches?" Damien muttered. "I'm tryna get some sleep, and you're all screaming your heads off!" He snapped. Serena looked at him in a way she had never seen him. Hatefully. Resentfully.

"Go to sleep, you'll be fine... Big baby..."

Mew laughed outside the window. " _Serves you right, for what you did to Ash!"_

Two days later, the Tournament began. Ash found his way back to his team, and was ready to face Misty again.

* * *

 **That's a wrap!**

 **Let me know what you guys want, or think I should include. So far, it seems like Ash will be in a harem with plenty of other girls.**

 **Don't forget to review! SG3, signing off!**


	7. Misty's defeat

**Seeking Freedom VII**

 **Misty's defeat:**

 **AN: I've been reading your reviews and I think that I've decided the harem. The situation with Serena is just about tied right now, so I've decided to make her a 'secondary' character compared to the others.**

 **So far:**

 **-Annabel**

 **-Serena**

 **-Sabrina**

 **-Elesa**

 **-Cynthia**

 **Thanks for your support, and please remember to review! Reviews are what keep this story alive! At the time of writing this, Seeking Freedom currently has 99 favourites!**

 **Disclaimer: Do I own Pokemon? No. I'm just an addict to the series.**

* * *

Seeking Freedom VII

Misty's defeat:

Ash felt just about ready for taking down an Elite Four member: traitor or not, the Elite Four was the Elite Four and underestimating such foes would surely cost them their victory.

Although their match wasn't until later, they decided to train some more. After all, power only came from diligent work. It wasn't long until the tournament would start, though.

He signalled to all of his Pokemon to resume training, except for the one he wanted to take with him. Don Satoshi was a statement of power, and that had to be reflected here.

"Volcarona, I chose you." The Sun Pokemon nodded, and floated to his side. The others looked at him slighty confused.

"Sceptile, Pikachu: in case Volcarona fails, you guys will be my back-ups. Although, I don't think she will."

Ash left, and Feraligatr sighed in disappointment: he looked forward to battling Misty.

"Don't worry," Charizard grunted. "Ash will let us destroy the others in the tournament."

Feraligatr pouted. "And if he doesn't?"

Charizard shrugged. "We'll just go on a man-hunt for each of them. Ash can't stop us. Hey, where'd that pink one go?" Charizard muttered. There were more Pokemon in Don Satoshi's team now, and it was hard to keep tabs on all of them.

Mew had actually gone with Ash, in order to ensure his safety. She knew this boy was reckless- from the experience at the Tree of Beginning- but was also very cool and collected. She knew he had been betrayed, yet she couldn't envision someone as bright and fun-loving as Ash being so… Evil. Mew still liked Ash a lot, though. He was kind, polite, and treated everyone equally. He didn't care that Mew and Latias were Legendaries, and had ordered them to train alongside the others. His Pokemon were brutally powerful, almost overwhelming the New Species Pokemon at certain points. Her arms and legs hurt from wrestling with Pupitar.

By the time they had reached the stadium, the place was packed. Ash couldn't find his way in at all. Then, as it turned out, his match was located in Stadium C. He groaned. He was actually getting late.

"Volcarona, let's fly." He ordered. Volcarona nodded, and Ash hung off of her until they reached the stadium that ooked like a dome. Ash landed on the opposite side of the pitch to an orange-haired girl who was surrounded by make-up artists. Ash looked at her, wondering where Misty had gone.

"The blue trainer has arrived: the match can begin!" The referee sounded relieved.

"Just a 'sec!" The red trainer called. The audience groaned. "I need to look good for the camera! You'd never understand beauty." Ash realised, from the whining voice, that this was indeed Misty Waterflower. Ash frowned at the traitor. Misty never used to care about make-up! What had changed? Why did she feel the need to impress the audience all of a sudden?

Ash saw an opportunity to prey at her weaknesses. "Okay, get lost you guys… I'm done now! We can begin!"

The audience sighed in relief.

"This will be a three-on-three Pokemon Battle between Misty Waterflower of Cerulean City, and..."

She looked at the blue trainer for his name.

"Don Satoshi. From Sinnoh." He said icily.

"Don Satoshi of… Just Sinnoh? Nowhere in particular?" Ash glared at the referee for making a joke. She immediately backed down.

The stadium watched on, and one thought went through their minds: "Poor boy has to face an Elite Four in the First Round. Bless him, he's come this far for nothing." Ash didn't realise that the first round would be three-on-threes. He had only brought Volcarona with him. It was all or nothing, he realised. That was how he had always lived.

" _You dummy! You didn't think to check with anyone about_ _what the battle style was_ _?"_ Mew hissed at him from the Pokeball.

" _I'm sure Volcarona can win this."_

In the seats closest to the battlefield, Ash's old friends were cheering for Misty. Damien had come along, too- it was bad rep not to show up to the matches, after all. Serena recognised the boy from her dream the other night. She couldn't figure out what it was about him that drew her attention. He had opened his black cloak, and wore a blue thermal top. The thermal shirt hugged his body. He was evidently strong, if not, at least good-looking.

"Clobber him, Mist!" Dawn cheered. "Yeah," Serena cheered. Somehow, her heart wasn't fully invested in him. She had kept her dream about that strange, bold, black-haired boy to herself. Damien was also thinking deeply about Don Satoshi.

" _That's the guy who pushed me the other day,"_ He thought. " _Don Satoshi… Silver mentioned you. He seemed terrified of you. Just how powerful are you?"_

"Can't you sense it, Damien?" Brendan Emeralds said. Neither turned to face the other. "He's radiating power. And, that Pokemon next to him just so happens to be the rarest non-Legendary Pokemon in the world."

"How exactly can you tell?"  
"My mother taught me how to recognise a strong Pokemon when hunting. Hunter J's instincts are never wrong." Damien's eyes lit up. He had the name and face: he was going to revoke Don Satoshi's license entirely. That strange, Bug Pokemon was all his.

"Let the battle begin! In light of the red trainer's status as an Elite Four, Blue Trainer gets the first move!"

Ash grinned. This was all going to plan. "Volcarona, may the Aura be with you." The stadium erupted into gasps. Volcarona fluttered onto the stage. Embers and golden dust dropped from her wings, and the Pokemon carried a magnificent, radiant Aura. Misty laughed.

"You really don't know anything, do you? A Fire-Pokemon? Against MISTY?" She cackled wildly.

"..." Ash didn't say anything. Could Volcarona really handle three Elite Four Pokemon? As soon as Misty called out her Pokemon, Ash realised the answer was a resounding 'yes'.

"Misty calls… Golduck!"

Ash remembered his adventures with the bizarre Psyduck. Here he was, fully evolved. When looking at him, however, Ash felt pitiful for Golduck. The Water-type wasn't strong at all. Ash had met _Psyduck_ that were stronger than this Golduck. Suddenly, he feared that the power gap between him and Volcarona was too great. Volcarona shared a glance with Ash, confirming his thoughts.

"I guess I'm starting us off." He said. "Volcarona, use your new Quiver Dance!" Ash ordered.

Volcarona started pouring out golden dust, and vibrated on the spot. She flew up and danced around in the air, whilst simultaneously quivering. Volcarona descended again, seemingly more powerful.

"Is that all you got? Golduck, Hydro Pump!"

Ash looked unimpressed. "Dodge." Volcarona floated up and dodged the high-volume jet.

"That was more like a Water Gun," The Bug Pokemon whispered. Ash nodded in response.

"Don't tell me that's all the Elite Four is capable of! Quiver Dance again." Ash taunted her.

"How dare you mock me?" Misty snapped. "I'll show you: Golduck, use Psychic to bring it in close!"

After Volcarona finished Quiver Dance, Golduck's eyes glowed blue and it drew Volcarona towards himself. Ash's smirk didn't vanish. He had played on Misty's anger.

"This is the end for Volcarona! Dynamic Punch!"

"Giga Drain."

Misty screamed when Golduck suddenly ended up on the floor, with Volcarona draining his energy away. The stadium looked on in shock as Misty's famous Golduck was defeated.

"No way! He must've cheated! Damien, you see it too, don't you, sweetie?" May asked.

Damien didn't say anything. Although the match had only just begun, he knew how it would end. Nobody had ever beaten his Elite Four before. Nobody had challenged Kanto's reign.

"He's already won this fight." He said plainly. This man was a threat to his pride as a champion. Silver was right. He needed to be eliminated.

Misty blushed in embarrassment. She was Misty of the Elite Four. Where did this CHUMP get off, beating her Golduck into the ground? It was time to settle this.

"That does it! Gyarados, teach this boy a lesson!"

Ash folded his arms. "It's you, who needs to learn." He retorted coldly. "Nobody, especially not an Elite Four member, should underestimate any opponent!"

The Atrocious Pokemon landed on the field. The huge serpent roared, in an attempt to scare Volcarona.

"See that? Gyarados has used Intimidate on Volcarona! You can't win!" She sneered.

"Volcarona, String Shot." Misty laughed. "What're you gonna do? Tie him up?"

Ash smirked. "Lucky guess." Misty's eyes widened.

Volcarona rocketed upwards, and produced a massive string, which bound Gyarados' tail. Gyarados roared, and tried to bite the string off. As soon as he bit into it, Volcarona wrapped Gyarados in and around itself. Volcarona smirked, and soon Gyarados was unable to move. Misty shrieked in horror.

"Gyarados, break free with Flamethrower!" She cried. Gyarados' mouth was bound as well.

Volcarona descended in front of Ash.

"Misty. Gyarados is stuck. It can't fight." Misty paled in horror.

"You… You're a real monster! C'mon Gyarados, show him what we're made of!" She cried again.

No response. Ash yawned.

"Volcarona, Flamethrower." A grand streak of flames appeared. A left a trail of ashes was left on the ground. As the Flamethrower made impact with Gyarados, the strings all lit up. Gyarados' roars could be heard from within. After the attack cleared, Gyarados stood up and roared as loudly as he could.

"That's it. Hyper Beam, Gyarados!" Misty commanded. Gyarados charged a bright red beam and launched it at Volcarona. The attack hit the ground, and a vast explosion commenced.

"YEAH! ALRIGHT, MISTY!" Iris cheered. Damien smirked. Nothing ever survived a Hyper Beam. He remembered using the move against Ketchum's Pikachu all those years ago, and the damage it had done was tremendous.

The smoke from the attack cleared. Volcarona was no longer there.

"Huh? Where'd it go?" Misty demanded. May gasped. "Gyarados incinerated it!" At once the others laughed. "That's how tough Misty's Gyarados is, after all!"

Paul, from the stands, watched the match, highly interested. He looked at Volcarona, who was flying high in the sky.

"Oh, no! Where's Volcarona?" Max exclaimed. Annabel gasped- Ash had made a fool of Misty.

"Volcarona's okay, Max." Zoe explained. "She's up there, see?"

"Volcarona is unable to..." At once, Gyarados yelled in terror. It's very form had been distorted by some strange attack. Suddenly, Volcarona descended from above, completely unscathed. Gyarados collapsed from the effects of Extrasenory.

"What? How did Volcarona survive that Hyper Beam? No Pokemon has ever done that before!"

Don Satoshi looked unimpressed.

"I don't know whether that's true or not, but I'm surprised you even managed to hit anything with that lazy attack. Volcarona avoided it entirely." Misty's jaw dropped in disbelief. How? When?

She returned Gyarados. "Okay, Satoshi," She spat. "NOW YOU'VE MADE ME MAD! STARMIE, GET OUT HERE AND USE SURF!" She ordered. Ash grinned. Starmie would do perfectly.

As the Star-shaped Pokemon came out, it summoned a gargantuan wave.

"Misty's down to her last Pokemon, folks! Don Satoshi is still using his first one! Just who IS this man?" The referee asked.

"Hurricane."

Everyone watched intently. Volcarona ascended, wordlessly, and suddenly, the wave dispersed under the force of the sharp winds. A spiralling hurricane suddenly appeared, and dispersed water in all directions. Some of it hit Misty in the face, and her mascara began to run down her face.

"NO!" She screamed. "THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING!" Misty reached into her pockets for a mirror, and started combing her in panic. Ash frowned at how distracted she had become.

"Volcarona, Bug Buzz!" He sharply ordered. It was time to finish the traitor once and for all. Volcarona descended to Starmie's level, whom fought to fend off the Sun Pokemon, but failed. Volcarona's body started to vibrate, and an array of red rings appeared. The buzzing produced by each damaged Starmie greatly, and the Psychic Type was defeated.

"..." The referee was speechless. "In just three minutes and twelve seconds, Misty of the Kanto Elite Four has been defeated. Starmie is unable to battle. Volcarona is the winner, and the victor is Don Satoshi. Furthermore, Don Satoshi has smashed the previous record, which was Tobias Takuto's five minutes and forty-two seconds!"

There was silence. Damien was disgusted at Misty's weakness. She lost horribly, even though she had the type advantage. For his Elite Four, that was unforgivable.

At last, the stadium burst into applause. Don Satoshi, whom they thought was the underdog, had completely thrashed an Elite Four member with just one Pokemon. Misty hung her head in shame, and in fear of what Damien would do to her.

From the executive seats in the stadium, the League Embassy watched the match closely.

Giovanni saw Don Satoshi in action. His face. His auburn, dead eyes… Everything about him seemed to be familiar, but from where? "Silver, this man is not a threat," He said coldly. To Giovanni, Don Satoshi was... Disappointing. Silver gasped. "Father, this man defeated me! Surely-"

"Surely you are over-reacting. Other than Ein and Damien, you are the weakest of our group." Tobias sneered.

Silver growled. "Shut up, at least I trained my Pokemon, unlike you! You steal the DNA of the deceased, Tobias! Have you no shame?"

"I have no shame. I have only power, which you will never be able to replicate."

Silver growled in anguish. Somewhere, in the depths of the crowd, a weary eyed man in a grey jacket immediately recognised Ash.

"So, you've come this far..." He whispered. "… Don't fail, Ash. Please."

Cameras flared and the crowd went wild. Volcarona hissed at the attention. Ash wasn't so pleased by it either. "Misty!" He snapped. Misty had fallen to her knees. She looked up. Past the water Volcarona had splashed her with, more droplets poured down from her eyes. Ash felt bad for her, but she needed to hear this.

"You followed your desires, and not your heart. That's what cost you this victory. You were so concerned about looking good that you forgot the real focus of battling!" Misty looked down again and wiped her eyes. The other traitors crowded around her, and Damien pulled her away from the others, and into the locker rooms. Misty paled. The rest of them looked at Don Satoshi with hateful eyes.

"Ash, I suspect they will attack if we don't leave quickly."

"Good point, Volcarona. "

" _Mew, can you Teleport us away from here?"_

" _Of course!"_ A bright flash of light concealed Don Satoshi from sight. After the light had cleared, him and his Volcarona were nowhere to be seen, leaving the stadium to wonder where their new idol had gone. Suddenly, Ash felt like a big weight from his heart had been lifted. He didn't feel like the evil Don Satoshi, but for once, he was truly certain that he had done the right thing.

* * *

 **This one's a bit short, but I was under time constraints. Next time: Ash is going to destroy Trip, and maybe receive a few new Legendaries in the process...**

 **If you're enjoying the story, don't forget to follow, favourite and review!**


	8. Trip's falling all over the place!

**Seeking Freedom**

 **Chapter VIII:**

 **New Unova Champion?**

 **A/N: Hey guys, welcome back to Seeking Freedom! In this chapter, Don Satoshi takes Trip down a notch. I apologize for my delay, and I promise that I'll upload again soon.**

 **As for the harem, I have decided to add Lillie, from Pokemon Sun and Moon, and Princess Salvia from Arrowroot Town**

 **There will be more character development next chapter.**

 **In the reviews, tell me which traitor you want to go down next. It can be ANYONE except for Damien.**

 **A/N: As much as I don't like some of these characters, only ONE character will die in this story, okay? Please do not suggest that I kill or cause fatal harm to them, because that's a rather large ethical conundrum. Thank you for being a great audience! I love writing for you!**

 **Harem:**

 **-Cynthia**

 **-Lille**

 **-Annabel**

 **-Sabrina**

 **-Elesa**

 **-Princess Salvia**

 **-Serena**

 **Notes-**

 **Pokespeech- " _Like this!"_**

 ** _Telepathy or thought-_** _"Like this!"_

* * *

"I'm glad we got this over with," Damien muttered.

Misty inhaled sharply, gasping for air. She clung tightly to her bedsheets, her face fully flushed. Damien towered over her, with a dominating stare and a vindictive smirk.

"Well, Misty? What are we going to do?" He sneered.

"Don't say a thing..." She whispered. Damien hovered over her. His intimidating eyes were petrifying. They shook her to her core with a kind of primal fear.

"Yeah. See ya later, loser." He slammed the door behind him. Misty groaned in frustration at her sour situation.

Losing to Don Satoshi had changed her a lot. She had gone from being volatile and flirtatious to being more reserved and softly spoken. She sighed. Now she was deeply upset- after her loss, Misty had become a laughing stock for the Pokemon League. She could hardly go anywhere without somebody mocking her. She locked herself in the hotel room, and scarcely left. Her sickly behaviour began to take it's toll as the room began to smell morbid, and was covered with the tomboyish musk her brand of preferred deoderant.

The drawn curtains and shut doors contained the blue light radiated from the television. Misty looked at the television- a match was playing. It was a battle between Don Satoshi and another young trainer, from Johto.

Ursaring had been burned, which activated its' ability, Guts, doubling its' huge attack power- yet Don Satoshi was making a big joke out of him. Any other trainer would have been terrified by this Ursaring, but no matter how hard Ursaring tried, Volcarona danced away with mocking elegance.

The opposing trainer began to grow frustrated at the never ending battle. He gave the order,

"Ursaring, Stone Edge!"

To which Don Satoshi responded coldly.

"Flamethrower."

Volcarona scorched Ursaring with a relatively powerful looking Flamethrower. Ursaring blocked the attack with its' gigantic arms, but the force of the attack caused it to reel back, and collapse.

Ash folded his arms and shook his head, somewhat unimpressed. The trainer had too much faith in his Ursaring's raw power. Volcarona had simply soared over the Normal type, rendering the attack boost useless.

"Ursaring is unable to battle! The winner is Volcarona, and the victor is Don Satoshi!"

The stadium screamed in excitement, with their excited calls filling the sky.

Volcarona returned to his side. Ash made his way out of the battlefield and into the large lobby, where many fans were clamouring around something… Or someone, for that matter. The large open space in the middle of the lobby was filled with people. Nurse Joy was at her counter, watching the scene with worn out eyes.

"That's right, folks! It's the one and only Champion of Unova, Trip Urbs! If you ladies want some autographs, come right up!"

There they were. The traitors. He hated them all so much, the way they idolised themselves and made themselves the centre of attention wherever they went.

Ash scowled. On the table, Trip was stood gyrating his hips in a vulgar manner for many young women. Damien's posse was situated around them. Oddly enough, though, Damien was nowhere to be seen: May, Dawn and Serena, though, were still with the gang, huddled closely together, like a cluster of stars in the sky.

Ash scowled and turned away from them. He went to the counter where Nurse Joy was seated and asked about the next opponent he had to face. It was the same Nurse Joy from the other day, he noticed: they both had the same colour hairclip.

"Hello Nurse Joy."

"Hello, Ash." She beamed up at him, whispering quietly.  
"I enjoyed watching your match today, you're a very talented trainer. As are you, Volcarona."

The Sun Pokemon grunted and nodded in response, with what Nurse Joy assumed was her biggest smile.

"Thank you, Nurse Joy. Could you tell me when my next match is?"

Nurse Joy smiled. She looked at her monitor momentarily, before answering.

"Of course! Now, let me just check… Ah, it's at eight PM today in Stadium A. That's next door, the Castle Arena."

She started typing at a brisk pace, inputting keys rapidly.

"Let's see here… Next match, you're up against a trainer from the Alola Region. Very little is known about them, since they only recently introduced the Pokemon League into their society. All I can tell you about is name. He is called..."

The lobby doors swung open, and all eyes were on the man who had forced them open. He was dressed in a black jacket with a white pattern on it, with white, messy hair and golden sunglasses. A golden chain in the shape of a skull dropped from his neck. Behind him was a hulking, fortified Pokemon that looked incredibly powerful. It had six arms, each covered in a thick plate, and seemed to carry a dominating aura that crushed everything beneath it. The trainer was flanked by a woman with long pink hair and dark clothing. Two cronies followed them, dressed in black masks. They were popping, locking, and dropping sick moves all over the lobby.

"The big bad boss who beats you down, and beats you down, and never lets up… It's your boy, Guzma!"

Each move pronounced the intense swagger he had. He leaped onto the table where Trip was standing. The cronies changed their dance to a more dynamic and intimidating one, which caused everyone to back off. Ash watched the scene with caution. The girl chuckled and watched from the side.

Trip growled. "Hey, who do you think you are, man? Get lost, we were here first!"

Trip pushed big bad Guzma, but the boss didn't flinch one bit. He folded his arms whilst Trip struggled against him.

"Hey, now! You disrespectin' the boss? That's gonna be your loss! Guzma will pound you!" Trip flushed.

"Why, you… Do you know who I am?" Trip snapped. He raised his hand and slapped Guzma across the face.

The room went completely silent.

"… Try harder, kid," The boss spoke. "My turn now."

Guzma kicked him so hard that Trip flew across the lobby. After he hit the ground, he slid across the floor looking like a wet baseball. Ash watched with some kind of amusement. Guzma, from atop the table, scoured the room. Only Ash felt brave enough to speak- and even then, what would he say? Nurse Joy was too afraid to speak up, and even the arrogant traitors were on the verge of soiling their pants.

"Which one of you is my next opponent? Which one of you is Don Satoshi?"

"H-hey! I'm not done yet..." Trip stood up and gritted his teeth at the big man.

"How dare you kick me..." Trip got up and charged towards Guzma. By the time he had reached, Guzma leaped into the air above him.

"BODY SLAM ATTACK!" Guzma roared a hearty laugh and pounced on Trip. Guzma crashed onto Trip, who screamed loudly on his way down.

The Unova Champion was too shocked and scared to cry. He sobbed quietly at Guzma's feet, afraid of the relentles boss. Now Guzma had become filled with the lust for battle.

"Well? Is Don Satoshi not here, then?" He stormed. His voice was like a raging thunderstorm.

"Grrr, Guzma! You wasted time on these small fries!" Guzma growled and kicked Trip lightly. The trainer winced.

"Stupid!"

He kicked Trip again.

"You idiot, Guzma!"

Trip yelped in agony.

Ash decided that enough was enough: even Trip didn't deserve this punishment.

"I am Don Satoshi." Ash walked forwards. He was beginning to worry about Trip's safety now: if anyone was going to destroy Trip, it certainly wasn't this man.

The lobby looked at him like he was crazy. Volcarona unleashed a stream of embers as a warning: both characters exuded an aura that screamed "Don't screw with me!"

Guzma approached Ash with his eyes gleaming brightly.

"So… You're the infamous trainer, huh? Heh. You look pretty tough for a kid. What's with your stupid coat though?" Guzma started to size Ash up. He waggled a finger at his arms, and stared down at his brown, springy shoes.

"You look pretty tough too. Must have taken a lot of brawn to steal that necklace from a toy shop. Did they not give you a senior discount?"

Guzma laughed. The laugh was hearty and deep, yet ridden with sinister flair.

"You've got some spirit! We need kids like you in Team Skull!"

"Team _Skull?_ Never head of them."

The two began to square off. The huge, Bug-type Pokemon that was with him locked eyes with Volcarona, and the two began to growl. They snarled and hurled themselves at each other with incredible force. Volcarona sent it flying back with a resplendent Flame Burst, but the Hard Scale Pokemon came back with an Aqua Jet. Volcarona's eyes widened in shock as the super-effective attack made it's away towards her.

This was when enough was enough. Suddenly, an Audino appeared between them, holding the two back with incredible strength. Nurse Joy was finally fed up of these two.

"Hey! No Pokemon will be injured in this stadium! Have some respect for your fellow trainer! If you want to fight, do it outside!" Nurse Joy ordered. She was surprisingly loud. Ash suddenly looked guilty and snapped his fingers at Volcarona, who returned to his side sulkingly.

Guzma sniggered and backed off. "Tonight at eight. We settle this. C'mon, Goliscopod. Let's train."

Guzma snapped his fingers and his group left the lobby. His cronies danced ferociously and threateningly on their way out.

Trip, who had seemingly recovered from his injuries, staggered to his feet and glared at Guzma and the fleeting Team Skull.

"Volcarona..."

"Wipe the floor with that Goliscopod."

"..."

"Volcarona?"

" _ **Hmm? Oh, yes. Of course.**_ " Ash noticed some faint red dust around Volcarona's fur.

" _ **I'm sure that's not the only part of him she wants to wipe..."**_ Pikachu sniggered. Ash had to hold back an incredible laugh to avoid seeming crazy. Volcarona growled.

" _ **Watch it there, Pikachu. I would watch your tongue: I've seen the way you stare at- Ash, slow down!"**_

The trio left the Pokemon centre in high spirits, but someone wasn't so happy with this.

Trip leered at Don Satoshi's spine.

"What's up Trip?" Iris asked.

"I'll tell you- ow, this hurts- Ever since that Don Satoshi freak showed up, bad things have been happening. Damien's car got smashed, Misty got all lame and stuff, and now THAT creep shows up and tries to attack me?"

"What do you mean 'try'? It was like YOU were trying to get beaten up by him!"

"No, Clement, I am a Champion… And we do not _hit_ other trainers for no reason. Now, who's coming with me to get rid of that creep once and for all?"

Disregarding the irony of his words, Clement shook his head. "I gotta train…" He said.

"I need ingredients," Cilan muttered. They all muttered their own excuses and wandered off in their own directions. May, Dawn and Serena all went off to train in the contest halls near the stadium.

On the way there, May and Dawn decided the time was right to ask about Serena's strange behaviour lately.

"Hey Serena, what's wrong? You've been all depressed these past few days. Is it the stress?" May asked her closest friend.

Serena flushed and brought her hands together.

"It's nothing, really." She muttered.

"Don't be like that!" Dawn ordered. She ran in front of her, glad that unauthorized paparazzi wasn't allowed within a hundred feet of the stadium. "C'mon, Serena," She clasped the blonde girl's hands.

"We're practically sisters, you can tell us anything!" She told her cheerfully. "No need to worry!" She said.

Serena sighed, "It's about the other day," She said. The girls nodded.

"When I woke up after that nightmare, Damien just told me to go back to sleep, and… That hurt me. It's like… He… He didn't care about me at all..." She trailed off.

May and Dawn gave each other worried looks.

"SERENA! What's gotten into you? You know Damien loves all three of us equally! He's been a bit stressed out lately, but of course he loves you!" May exclaimed. Serena felt guilty for doubting him suddenly.

"May, you're being harsh! Serena, you're over thinking things. We're so lucky that Damien is in our lives. We have fame, fortune, and fans because of him. C'mon, of all the girls in the world, he chose us, and we should at least appreciate that he loves us, right?" Dawn nudged her. "It's pretty weird, but that's our lucky situation! Take it or leave it, I say."

Serena smiled faintly. "Yeah. You're right."

Together, they walked, gossiping about how amazing Damien was.

"In fact, Serena, I think he loves you even more than he loves us. He always spends time with you, and he's always staring." May said, with a hint of jealousy.

"Really? What, no, he's too sweet to just stare at a girl like that! That would be so creepy!" Serena exclaimed.

"Ha, you know it's true, Serena!" Both girls leaned into her.

"Maybe he'll 'take' you first?" They both whispered.

Serena's face turned red and she yelled, "Oh my, gosh, no, no, no! Don't even talk like that…" She trailed off again.

"Well, we'll just have to wait till we're ALL old enough, won't we, Dawn?" May glared at Dawn angrily.

"May, don't be like that! It's only a few more months!" Dawn complained in response.

"If I know one thing, it's that I'm sure he loves us. Am I right, guys?" Serena was beaming again.

"You are!"

In the distance, someone was rather unhappy with this turn of events. The Mirage Pokemon watched the scene upside- down from a nearby tree, surveying the blonde-haired girl.

" _This is one strange girl,"_ Mew thought to herself. " _She's buried her own emotions so deep to avoid standing out. That is odd, even by human standards."_

" _ **Golly, you are nosy little matchmaker!"**_ A voice called out to her. Mew's eyes shot out of her head and leaped into the air.

It was no use. A black silhouette raced through the sky, and Mew could feel the Pokemon's breath on her back.

" _Tee-hee, slow as ever, I see."_ The strange voiced told her through telepathy. Both Pokemon warped away in a flash of light. They both reappeared in the depths of the deepest forest Mew could find. There was barely any space for either Pokemon to breath.

" _You… **You know it's not safe for you here, why did you come** **to this place** **?"**_

" _ **We have a duty to our fellow Legendaries. Although it has been many ages since you and the others abandoned us, and had since left us to die."**_

Mew glared at the black Pokemon. It had a dark body with floral-pink features. It boasted rose pink, flowing hair that went to it's bottom half, which consisted of a pink ovoid with a pattern on it.

" _ **I know you may not know this, but Arceus is on the verge of death here! If more of us are captured, Tapu Lele-"**_

" _ **I've read your mind already. I've informed the other Tapu of this. We are keeping ourselves as safe as possible. I know the menace which threatens to destroy the natural order, but I fear something much worse at play in this little gathering. I feel in the air. You too have sensed its' presence before."**_

Mew yet again could not believe the sheer power and wit of the Tapu.

" _ **Tapu Koko is still**_ _ **deeply upset**_ _ **at what you did ten thousand years ago. In fact,**_ _ **he was so angry that he meditated for a hundred years to quell his destructive wrath**_ _ **.**_ _ **Once news came about that a new Chosen one was born, he briefly returned to**_ _ **his former self,**_ _ **but no such hero has come to our land.**_ _ **Tell me, Mew, what of the Chosen One who was promised to free the world? Why did he never come to the Alola Region?"**_

" _ **..."**_ Mew fell silent.

" _ **I want you to answer me. I will not probe your mind."**_

Mew gasped as Tapu Lele forced her way into her mindscape. Suddenly, she could see destroyed forests, rampant monsters and pollution everywhere. The oceans had become rotten and the Pokemon were kept in cages. The Alola region was unrecognizable.

" _ **The Totem Pokemon have all been defeated. We were greatly injured during the attack and were forced to flee to this place. The Chosen One never came. You betrayed us in our fight against the Ultra Beasts**_ _ **a long time ago**_ _ **, and now you've even let our people suffer. Why did the Chosen One never come to Alola?"**_

" _ **What happened with the Chosen One was beyond our control: we**_ _ **are prohibited from interfering with**_ _ **human relationships,**_ _ **and may**_ _ **onl**_ _ **y act upon**_ _ **the bond**_ _ **s**_ _ **we have with individual people. The calamity had**_ _ **temporarily**_ _ **defeated**_ _ **the Chosen one,**_ _ **and the humans had exiled him**_ _ **from their society**_ _ **. His heart became black as night, and he sought only to destroy it's influence. He isn't aware that the Alola Region even exists.**_ _ **He has only recently made the decision to show his face here, seeing as there many Legendary Pokemon in need here.**_ _ **"**_

Tapu Lele seemed shocked beyond words.

"… _ **This Chosen One, he is at this very tournament?"**_

" _ **Yes."**_

" _ **And how powerful is he? Tapu Bulu hasn't had a decent battle in years, and a recent challenger came close to an even match against him. That has only served to strengthen his thirst for battle. He strongly wishes to fight a worthy opponent."**_

Mew froze a little bit.

" _ **No, he's not strong enough. He has grown very much, but he isn't powerful enough to defeat you or the other Tapu."**_

Tapu Lele smiled horrendously. Mew felt a chill go down her spine, and it didn't slip the Tapu's notice.

" _ **What if Tapu Koko thrashes your Chosen One? He is furious at this boy for never protecting Alola!"**_

" _ **Please… He just learned how to smile again..."**_

Mew pleaded.

Tapu Lele smiled.

" _ **I cannot tell him what to do. Tapu Koko will act according to his own emotions, but I trust that he will come to the right decision."**_

 _ **"Hopefully your Chosen warrior is a worthy fighter."**_

* * *

"Pikachu, put that ketchup down! Now!" Ash ordered.

"Pika-Pika!" The mouse snapped back.

"No! You'll get sick!" Ash made to grab Pikachu, who wrestled his way out of Ash's grip.

" _ **NEVER!"**_ The mouse cackled wildly.

Pikachu leaped onto the next table, and cut the bottle open and chugged it down. The once red bottle slowly became clear, and became fully transparent in a matter of seconds. Ash watched in shock (and disgust) at what Pikachu had done.

"That's enough..." He snapped. He went to pick Pikachu up and drag him away from the little restaurant, but the Electric Mouse slipped away and jumped on top of another bottle. He broke it open with his tail, and shoved his head down the bottle.

"Pikachu! I can't afford to let you do that- Pikachu? Pi, what's wrong?"

Pikachu took his head out of the bottle and tears were streaming down his eyes. The rodent looked deeply hurt and jumped head-first back down on the table. Ash looked on in fear.

" _ **It..."**_

"What happened?"

Pikachu could hardly talk because of the tears. He sobbed uncontrollably and wailed into the sky.

" _ **IT WASN'T KETCHUP, THAT WAS SUPER HOT SAUCE!"**_

"WHAT? AHA HA… ARE YOU GOING TO…. BE… HA-HA!"

" _ **SILENCE!"**_ Pikachu whined. If only the others were here, Ash thought. Ash fell to the floor in laughter, and the packed restaurant owner never even realized that his bottles had been smashed.

"Come on, Pikachu," Ash smiled at his starter, who scurried to his feet with a heartbroken face. Ash picked the Electric Mouse and put him in the bag so he wouldn't have to walk with a poorly stomach. Volcarona soared above them, giggling at Pikachu's antics.

Together, they reached their training camp. Ash was proud to see them all working hard in his absence. Lucario and Sceptile were swimming full-speed lengths in the river by the camp, and Charizard lifted enormous tree trunks off of the ground. Sylveon and Flygon both practiced their move co-ordination, whilst the Flying types in the sky trained their stamina with ropes that bound them to the ground, which exercised their muscular wings.

"Hey, guys!" Ash greeted. They all cheered and landed before him, eyes gleaming with curiosity. Pikachu emerged from the depths of the bag, and went out to greet his friends. Ash sat down on the stump he had called dibs on, and looked ready to lecture them.

"I'll just wait for everyone to show up first."

He could sense Latias' presence in the wind, skyward of them, yet she didn't appear for some reason. Ash looked at her carefully, ensuring that she was all right. He observed both Lucario and Sceptile emerging from the river, dripping wet and panting.

"Where's Mew, guys?"

Lucario grunted. " _ **She mentioned something about love and spying. She flew away and hasn't returned since.**_ "

Ash frowned. "I hope she's all right. Anyway, the match went great! Volcarona wiped the floor with them again."

The others all groaned in annoyance, except for Pupitar, who listened in curiously.

" _ **C'mon, Ash. Hasn't she fought enough? There's only**_ _ **one battle**_ _ **left in the first round, you know! You can't keep using her, let us get some time in the spotlight!**_ " Feraligatr pointed out.

"Fair point, fair point. Anyway, I promised Volcarona this next battle, so I still plan on using her..."

"That's a very good point, Feraligatr," Ash mumbled. "On one hand, I need you all to compete in a stadium. Battling in an arena is a lot different to fighting in the wild like we usually do, so I need you all to adjust. But on the other hand..." Ash muttered. He would three Pokemon that wouldn't give away that he was Ash Ketchum: that had to kept as a secret.

"Okay then: I've decided: Volcarona, you are my first choice, Feraligatr, you are my second, since you raised this argument, and…" He looked at his admirable soldiers. One stood out amongst the others in his inexperience.

"… Pupitar. I chose you to fight in the match. I think the experience will be good for you. Now, in the meantime," He said.

Suddenly, a rustling sound came from the bushes. Something was there.

Pikachu leaped out of Ash's lap and started sparking. A sinister laugh emerged from the woods and the others stood up in fear of the intruder.

Ash glared. It seemed that Charizard too recognized the voice.

"So, I follow the great Don Satoshi, and this is what I find? Heh heh… What're you doing here, you loser? This is the Pokemon MASTER'S Tournament! No criminals allowed!"

Trip emerged from the forest. Ash narrowed his eyes at him.

"Trip. If it isn't the fake Champion himself. What do you want?"

"I knew something sketchy was up when you showed up. Bad things started happening, and I knew you had something to do with it, you little demon. Now, I've figured it out… Ketchum." He pointed his finger accusingly. Ash gritted his teeth.

"I'm sure you know what Damien would do if he knew you were here. He'd wipe you out, destroy you, and he'd take your Pokemon from you. But, Ash, my boy, I'm one for deals, and you're sitting on some prime land here. Let's listen to my offer, shall we?"

Ash looked at him confusedly. "What…? You're crazy, do you know that? What do you mean by an 'offer'?"

Trip chuckled. He began to tread his finger along the camera around his neck.

"What I mean is, you've got a nice training spot here. How about you give it to me, and I'll delete all the pictures I just took. They'll never see the light of day, I promise. Deal?"

"No deal. I'm not scared of Damien. He can't push me around like that." He said weakly. Trip raised an eyebrow in a taunting manner. Trip had seen right through his ruse.

"C'mon, we both you're STILL scared of him. There's no point in denying it! Now hand over this spot!"

"You don't even know me..." Ash hissed. Trip noticed Pikachu sparking h

"You're still using that rat, I see. Can't afford a Thunderstone for it? By the looks of it, you can't even afford a shower."

"I don't want to fight you, Trip. Get out my sight."

"Tsk. I tried to be civil, but you wouldn't have my offer. Now, I have no choice but to take you down! Conkelldurr, go!"

Ash was grinning on the inside. Now, the traitors could finally fall.

Trip sent out the huge Fighting-Type Pokemon, who roared upon appearing. Ash folded his arms.

"If you're going to act like a child, then I'll treat you like a child. Pupitar, show him what you're made of!"

Ash's team looked at him confusedly, but Sceptile nodded with a knowing stare. The Pupae Pokemon looked terrified by the bigger Pokemon."

" _Pupitar, I promise you. There is no need to be afraid of him. I'll guide you to victory, don't you worry."_ He told him through Aura. Pupitar settled down a little bit, and faced Conkelldur with bravery.

Trip laughed at the sight. "You think that'll win you the match? You don't know who you're up against! I am the Unova Champion, and nobody can beat me!"

Ash looked annoyed by this, but regained his steely composure.

"I've been meaning to ask about this, but HOW did YOU become the Champion? The Unova League is quite tough, so there's no way that Conkelldurr is strong enough to beat Alder."

Conkelldurr pouted at the insult, but his trainer fumed.

"How DARE you, Ketchum? Who do you think you are? I didn't even NEED to challenge Alder, he gave up his position to me after hearing that I trained alongside Damien! Who the heck do you think you are to challenge me?"

The flames of rivalry picked up again. Ash was secretly excited at the thought of battling Trip, just to see how much stronger his old rival had become.

"I'm Ash Ketchum, and I'm going to wipe the floor with you. If you never even fought a Champion before, I know you're a fraud."

"THAT'S ENOUGH! CONKELLDURR, USE DYNAMIC PUNCH! SMASH THAT LITTLE ROCK!"

The huge Pokemon charged forwards, momentarily carrying it's two huge girders under its' arms.

" _Follow my lead,"_ Ash instructed.

"Rock Climb." Pupitar released a pulse of maroon energy, which created a steep stairway of rock. Pupitar climbed to the top of the pillars, escaping Conkelldur's fury. Ash smirked.

"Rock Polish."

"Grr, Focus Blast."

Ash smirked when Pupitar's body became more sleek, and it dodged the brown blast of energy with ease.

"Now, Dragon Dance."

Pupitar spun around, and a red pulse erupted around it. Now, Pupitar was moving at three extra levels of speed, and had some extra attack power. It was time to unleash the offensive.

"Conkelldurr, use Dynamic Punch!"

" _Dodge it."_

Pupitar sidestepped the massive attack, without much effort.

"Now, Pupitar, use Iron Head! Then move back with Dragon Dance, and finish off with Rock Polish!"

Pupitar crashed into Conkelldurr, knocking the big Pokemon down on its' girders, and retreating back in a spinning manoeuvre. After he stopped, Pupitar began to glow: now he had a glowing sheen to his rough body.

A green glow emerged from Pupitar's body. Ash smirked.

"What's that?"

"Of course you don't know… That there, is what happens when one of a Pokemon's physical attributes can't go any further. At maximum speed, Pupitar glows green to signify the change."

Pupitar moved swiftly, dodging Conkelldurr's Focus Blasts with ease. It faced the huge Pokemon in a matter of seconds, and crashed into it with Take Down. The Champion's Pokemon fell down, defeated.

"Grr… My Conkelldurr…. You'll regret this! Jelicient, I choose you!"

Trip's old Frillish had evolved, and was now larger and had a pale blue sheen. The Floating Pokemon blew bubbles in an intimidating manner, smirking in a bully-like way to Pupitar.

Pupitar nodded bravely at the challenge, racing forwards with another Iron Head.

"What are you, crazy? Hydro Pump! Wipe this punk's Pokemon out!" Trip ordered. Pupitar simply sidestepped the attack.

Ash admired Pupitar's newfound bravery, but was still worried- this wasn't going to end well, he could tell.

"Pupitar, use Crunch!"

Pupitar roared, shifted attacks, and unleashed a huge bite on Jellicient, who shrieked in pain.

Pupitar raced towards Jellicient, aiming to use Crunch again.

" _Pupitar, no_!" Ash commanded, but Pupitar was feeling too confident in himself.

"Hydro Pump!"

Crunch failed to work, and Pupitar took the full force of Hydro Pump. Pupitar cried out in pain as it was sent flying back, and it landed in the side of a rock.

"Pupitar… Pupi…?" (Why did I lose… Why?)

Ash swerved around to see if Pupitar was okay. The others crowded around him to ensure his safety. Ash turned back to Trip with a hateful stare.

"That's Jellicient's special ability, Cursed Body, right? You've used this strategy against me before."

Trip nodded arrogantly.

"See, my Jellicient is indestructible. You're finished, and your luck is through. You fell for the same trick twice."

Ash looked Trip in the eye, somewhat upset. "Trip, why did you betray me?"

"What are you talking about?"

"You know what I mean!" Ash snapped. "When Damien said I broke into Professor Oak's lab, you stood by him in court rather than me. Why? Why was it, that in Unova, you were so mean to me? I thought you changed after the Vetress Conference!"

Trip glared at him angrily. "You're such a little idiot. I knew you were too naive to commit a crime like that. I knew from the start that you were innocent."

Ash gasped.

"Are you lying to me? WHY DID YOU BETRAY ME THEN?" He roared. Even Noivern was taken aback by his shout.

"Money, you fool. I'm the Champion of Unova because of Damien's blessings. I got so much out of it, that the smart choice was to ditch you. Now look, it's paid of, hasn't it?"

Ash's eyes widened in disgust. He stared at the Unova Champion hatefully.

"How many…?" He demanded to know.

"HOW MANY OF MY FRIENDS BETRAYED ME FOR THE MONEY?"

Trip flinched.

"Okay, okay… Kenny, Conway, Barry, Sawyer, and Clement all knew that you never did anything. They only betrayed you so they could become better people. After battling you, I know they made the right choice."

Trip was cocky after defeating Pupitar. He felt safe and confident, having knocked out one of Ash's Pokemon. His smug smirk indicated sheer arrogance.

Ash clenched his fist in fury. These people betrayed him for fleeting fame. He was furious, and looked on the verge of going on a rampage. Then, he had an idea, and the air suddenly became cold and thick with malicious intent.

Ash smirked. It was time to have some fun.

"...Pikachu. Teach Trip a lesson." Ash's eyes gleamed with all the thoughts of defeating Trip. Hundreds of possibilities, each more amusing than the last.

On the sidelines, Flygon was holding Pupitar in a maternal manner, nursing his wounds.

" ** _This man, he is one of the dogs who betrayed our master, yes_**?"

" ** _Yeah. He's an arrogant pile of..."_**

 ** _"Watch it there, Charizard."_** Sceptile warned. Charizard growled at the Jungle Pokemon, who merely glared back.

" ** _This is what happens when you become arrogant. What a fool!"_** Charizard boomed.

"And the rodent returns!" Trip sneered. "Let's see if I don't kill it!"

Ash gritted his teeth in fury.

Pikachu leaped in front of Ash, and sparked it's cheeks at Jellicient, who took a step back in fear of the Electric-Type.

"Why do you need to talk like that? That was an awful thing to say!" Ash snapped.

"Pikachu, don't touch Jellicent. Use Nasty Plot first."

Pikachu closed his eyes and meditated for a brief moment. Afterwards, an orange pulse erupted from his body as his Special Attack increased.

"Jellicient, use Ice Beam."

"Use Shock Wave."

A bright wave of energy emerged from Pikachu's body, sending Jellicient flying.

"Now, Pikachu: let's teach him a lesson. Our strongest attack! Use your Zap Cannon! Show him just how strong you are!"

Pikachu smirked. Standing on all four of his paws, his body began to glow blue, and a cluster of electricity formed in front of his mouth. It took the shape of a golden ball that was like a star.

"Chhuuuuuaaaaa! Pi ka-pi-ka-pika CHUU!" Pikachu unleashed the dense ball of energy, no bigger than Jellicient's head, which hit the Floating Pokemon directly.

A massive explosion ensued and everyone covered their eyes. Many trees had become uprooted as a result of Pikachu's sheer power. A large, steaming crater was visible after the light cleared and all that was left was Jellicient's fainted form in the crater's depths. Trip put his hand over his mouth in shock.

"No… No way… You just destroyed those trees..."

Ash laughed. Did Trip REALLY think this was impressive?

'Pikachu's not even getting started, and that wasn't even his full power. That was him at fifty percent, I can sense it. At full power, Pikachu would have destroyed this whole forest in a second. Do you want to keep fighting me, even knowing this?"

Trip glared at him as though he was insane.

"You're a monster! Serperior, wipe him out!"

The Grass Serpent Pokemon materialised before Pikachu. It had a regal appearance, with leaves giving it a royal cloak-like structure. It stared at Ash momentarily before gasping.

"Trip? Why's your Serperior giving me that look?" He demanded to know. Trip laughed.

"If you MUST know, this isn't MY Serperior. This strong, beautiful Pokemon was made powerful under my control, after I took it in. I got rid of my old one, because why would you keep two of the same, huh?"

Ash's eyes narrowed. He looked at the Serperior before him.

"Snivy? Is that you?" Ash demanded to know.

" _ **Yes. It's me, Ash. It's me."**_ The Grass snake hung her head in shame.

"Why… Why are you with him?" Ash asked out of worry. Serperior's face flushed with embarrassment.

" _ **I heard about what you did, and I thought you had really attacked the Professor's lab. I got so scared that I chose Trip over…"**_

" _I've heard enough."_ Ash finished. _"You really let me down, Serperior."_

Serperior looked around, shocked to hear his voice inside of her head. Then she could only hang her head and curled in on herself.

"Serperior, use Coil."

"Pikachu, teach this traitor a lesson. Thunder Wave before it does that."

Pikachu's cheeks sparked, and a bright wave of electricity overcame Serperior's body. The Regal Pokemon winced as it fell to the floor with paralysis, but Pikachu wasn't done yet.

"Now," Ash smirked. "Use Fly."

Trip stammered on his words. "Wha… .How? What?" He couldn't quite express his thoughts as Pikachu leaped into the sky and pounced on Serperior, knocking it out cold.

"How does your Pikachu know Fly?"

Ash smirked at Trip condescendingly.

"Pikachu has a great deal of secret moves that only the best trainers know about. Good luck beating him!"

"Ketchum… You've really done it now. My strongest Pokemon: say hello to this familiar face!"

"GIBLE, FINISH THAT RAT!"

Ash smirked when Trip's last Pokemon came out. A bluish, grey Pokemon with a red underside and a yellow mark on his head appeared. When it saw Pikachu, it gasped before waving jovially.

" _ **Ash? Oh, I knew you were still alive, boss! I told the others, but they wouldn't believe me! I was so frightened without you! This lunatic here has been abusing me non-stop!"**_ Gible exclaimed.

"WHAT?" Ash exclaimed. "Trip, what have you been doing to my Gible for the past few years? I demand to know!"

" _ **With a big cane!"**_

"Tsk, none of your business! Gible, use Earthquake!"

"Icicle Crash!"

Pikachu shot an icy spear, although it was rather small, as not to hurt the Land Shark Pokemon badly. Gible tripped up a little bit and just… sat on the floor with a goofy smile.

"GIBLE! LISTEN TO ME YOU LITTLE MOLE!" Trip roared.

"Gible! Follow your heart!" Ash exclaimed cheerfully. Gible looked at Trip and then back to Ash.

Suddenly a blue glow enveloped the Land Shark Pokemon, and it began to grow.

"Oh no…" Trip panicked. He gulped.

Gible's legs extended outwards and his torso became longer. His stubby arms became longer with huge fins on the end. His head began to protrude out, and his tail grew much longer.

"Gaa-BITE!"

Gabite swiped the air around it, and lunged at Trip. It seized the Pokeball, and smashed it against the floor in excitement. It shattered into irreparable fragments.

"You… I oughta…" Trip's face flushed red. He reached for Vanniluxe's Pokeball, aiming to freeze the Pokemon to death, before Gabite grabbed his hand and moved it away. After releasing it, Gabite pushed Trip back into the bushes.

Trip, pink in the face, stood up and had to waddle away in humiliation due to the brown patch in his pants. Suddenly, he stopped.

"Just you wait," He ordered Ash. "I'll tell everyone you stole my Gible."

" ** _You won't say a word to anyone about anything, young man."_**

"What the…? Who said that?"

Mew suddenly reappeared in front of Trip. Trip was speechless in front of the Mythical Psychic Pokemon.

A bright flash of light engulfed Trip as his mind was wiped. When Trip finally came to his senses, he stared at the forest in confusion for a moment, before running away like a wild animal.

"Mew… What did you do?" Ash whispered.

"Simple, really," Mew explained.

"What I did was, I erased the memory of him meeting you here. I replaced it with the image of Gibe running away from him."

"So, why did he suddenly run away like that?"

"He was that scared of you, and that jealous of the power you had attained. He felt envious after seeing you, because he hadn't even worked to obtain his silly title. He ran away in fear of you," She looked at the steaming crater.

 _ **"You won't be seeing him for a very long time,**_ " Gabite stated with a laugh.

" ** _He has very nervous bowels."_**

"Don't get the wrong idea, Ash." Mew warned. "Trip never earned his Championship. I've been watching the Champions for a very long time, and I know that even the weakest Champions are far more powerful than he is. The damage you did here today wouldn't be enough to even amuse the strongest Champion."

Ash was deep in thought. Now, the other Champions were on another level to Pikachu, his strongest Pokemon. He shook his head: they needed to train even harder and even more to reach this new level of power.

"Guys, who wants to go train with Paul today?" Ash asked. They all cheered happily, excited by the thought.

Then Ash remembered, the Cave Pokemon was still here. Gabite was simply standing there, looking rather uncomfortable and alienated. The sight of Mew and Latias was rather terrifying for him.

"Gabite," Ash asked. "How would you like to join my team? To fight alongside us again. Would you like that?"

Gabite looked up with a bright smile. The bruises that Trip had given him had become fainter and fainter with the evolution, so Gabite looked rather healthy now. He looked around at Ash's team, recognising Staraptor, and Pikachu from Sinnoh. They all looked very powerful, each baring incredible levels of power. He wondered what would happen if he could achieve that level of strength, too.

" _ **Yes! I'll join you, Ash!**_ " Gabite cawed.

"That's the spirit!" Ash smiled and pulled out a red and white capsule. He tapped it against Gabite's head, and the Dragon Pokemon was sucked in. The ball shook once… The ball shook twice…. And then it shook three times.

Ash grinned and summoned Gabite to the field.

"Welcome back, Gabite!" He exclaimed, giving the Ground-type a hug.

"Gaaabite."

* * *

Meanwhile, in Johto, a rather hectic scene was taking place.

One could follow the cycle tracks from Pallet Town all the way through the Indigo Plateau, and into the Johto Region. This was an old man who had cycled over two hundred kilometres, only stopping when he needed to. Professor Oak almost fell off of his bicycle with the intense speed he had accumulated, and the long ride he had just travelled from Pallet Town to Greenfield was exhausting- he had cycled all the way into another region!

He left his cycle in the cycle rack next to Molly's sleeker and more modern bike and rushed to the front door. The front lawn was adorned with flowers and stone sculptures of Spencer's favourite Pokemon, like Umbreon and Espeon. The manor was indeed huge and impressive. There were two wooden doors, which were both taller than him. The house was renovated quite a lot, but still had a rather rustic charm to it. He saw the vast walls, were being cleaned by a small, fish-like Pokemon known as Wimpod, from the distant Alola Region.

His brother had sent both him and Spencer a specimen to research, and to keep. Professor Oak kept it on his ranch to enjoy life, though it rather decided to sit there and mope. Wimpod had the special power to eat just about anything, and it was rather humouring to see that ability put to good use as Wimpod scaled the walls and wiped them clean.

He knocked on the wooden gates, and called out to the Professor. He rung the doorbell, which created various chimes inside the house.

"Spencer, Spencer, open the door!" He demanded. It had been roughly two months since his last visit, where he got to watch over Max and Molly's battle.

Delia looked up in surprise. Spencer's sophisticated living room was equipped with an intercom that read out what anyone at the door was saying. She was watching television with her Mr. Mime on the large projector screen that Spencer had brought for when they had close friends visiting. The sound of Professor Oak's incoherent babbling drowned out the sound of her soap opera, and she sighed in exasperation. She got off of the comfortable, brown and black luxurious sofa, and wandered to the reception room.

The kitchen had its' own intercom, so Delia could hear two of the Professor whereas one was troublesome enough.

Mimey handed her the large key and she opened the door. The Professor burst through the door, and came to a stop in the living room, panting and taking deep breaths.

"Professor Oak. Nice to see you," She said faintly. They both knew just how much truth there was in those words.

"Ah," He began. "Delia, I'm glad; to see you here!" He said between pants.

"That's very kind of you. Shall I get Spencer?"

Professor Oak laughed. "No, no, no, I have something to show you as well. May I see your television, please?"  
Delia's eyes widened. "If this is anything like that Rotom incident, Spencer told me the answer is no!"

"No, no no! I think I might have found your son!" He exclaimed. Delia froze. Suddenly, she hurried to the first set of stairs, which led to Spenser's lab, one of the more forbidden parts of the lab. Only Professors and Wimpod ever went up there.

"Spencer! Spencer, Professor Oak, says he might have found Ash!" She yelled into the black void in the stairway.

Suddenly, the sound of a stampede could be heard. From the ancient-looking stairs, Professor Hale arrived in the living room. He skidded across the floor, leaving a screeching sound from his Ursaring shaped brown shoes.

"You've found Ash? Where is he?" Spencer asked pleadingly.

"I'll show you. Please turn the television to channel one-one-five. The one that's doing the Master's Tournament footage. The high-resolution one, please."

"This had better not be a joke, Professor Oak!"

"I wouldn't have cycled here all the way from Pallet for a joke, Spenser." Professor Oak responded calmly. If there was one thing he had learned, it was to remain calm- anger was what caused him to lose poor Ash in the first place. Maybe if he had just been patient, none of this would have happened...

Spencer picked up the remote and put in '115', which took him to the Battle Network Channel.

"...Now, for the highlights of the First Round," The announcer begun.

It showed an image of Paul's Electivire overwhelming a Whiscash, which had the type advantage.

Then, another reel of other trainers who had done incredibly impressive things. Tobias Takuto and his enigmatic Darkrai took down a Gardevoir, Hariyama, and Ninjask.

"Lastly, the most outstanding trainer of the First Round is the mysterious Don Satoshi, who destroyed Misty Waterflower in just three minutes! With a Volcarona!"

The camera showed the orange haired girl sitting in defeat. Opposite to her was a boy with black hair and a scar on his face.

"I see, Professor. A Volcarona. What a rare Pokemon." Professor Hale commented.

Then, the obsessive Professor said the unspeakable.

"I'm not interested in the POKEMON, I'm talking about the TRAINER!"

Delia recognised from the way he stood up, the way he ordered his magnificent-looking Pokemon, the way he spoke, that this was indeed her only son. In no time after she had said those words, she and Molly had packed their bags, along with the two professors, as they waited for the ferry to Kalos.

"It's him…" Was all she could think of.


	9. Healing of The Chosen One

**Seeking Freedom**

 **Chapter Nine: The Start of Ash's Healing.**

 **Hey guys! It's been a while but I haven't forgotten this project! I intend to update regularly, so don't worry too much for my sake.**

 **A/N-I forgot to include this but Ash's Gible was one of the Pokemon that didn't want to leave Ash's side. Many people reviewed in, asking about this but the explanation is here.**

 **A/N 2:-About the harem: I don't want it too big and unmanageable, so this seems like a more ideal size.**

 **-Cynthia**

 **-Annabel**

 **-Serena**

 **-Korrina**

 **-Sabrina**

 **-** **Elesa**

 ** **IMPORTANT NOTICE:****

 ** **As many of you know, I want this to be a harem story, but I can't write romance very well beyond a superficial level. If anyone's out there, can you help me with writing the romance aspect and act as a Beta Reader?****

 ** **In this scenario, I'd be the author, and the beta would read through it and give me some advice for improvement, and tell me how to set up and write the romance!****

 ** **Thank you for reading my story! I am grateful for all the positivity, but I was slightly sad to see the negative response to chapter eight. I'll admit that it was a MUCH weaker chapter than the rest of the story and failed to hold people's interest, and I'd like to make sure that that doesn't happen ever again.****

 ** **Thought and telepathy:**** **"** _ **Like this!"**_

 _ **Pokémon speech: "Like this!"**_

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon. Pokémon is owned by Game Freak and Nintendo.**

 _Slam, punch, bash, kick_!

The explosive sounds of these actions bounced across the training field in the garden of Paul's villa. Ash and his Lucario sparred one another with great tenacity. All of Ash's other Pokemon were on dedicated training plans back in the heart of the forest.

It was rare that Ash actually won these little scuffles, but this time, an ill-timed punch gave Ash enough room to flip Lucario over.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk," He shook his head. "They'll kick your ass out there Lucario. Watch your step." He said tauntingly. The Aura Pokemon, brewing with tacit humiliation, stood up and readied himself for round two. Lucario and Ash clashed against one another, dancing delicately away from each other's moves. Lucario made a sweeping kick, and Ash jumped over him, pinning him to the ground. Lucario slipped away, and jumped onto Ash. Ash braced himself for impact as Lucario's fists came down from above.

"Ash, it's time for that shower!" A voice chimed from Paul's villa. Lucario stopped and looked up, giving Ash enough room to throw him off. Brushing his hair back, he smirked and said, "I win again." And wandered into the house. He could feel Lucario's Aura explode with sheer frustration.

Annabel was waiting with a towel in her hands, and Brock was carrying various things like scissors, nail cutters, and various bottles of soaps. "Bathroom's this way," Brock instructed. Ash followed him, with Annabel right behind him. Ash sighed, and followed them into the room. A large, opalescent tub was filled with lukewarm water. It had been a very long time since he had been able to use a tub like this.

"Here's some soap, shampoo, and conditioner. I want you to use all three of these." He dropped the bottles into Ash's hands, who took them with a grunt.

"Here's some clean undergarments," Ash flushed slightly when he received them, remembering his mother's lectures about the importance of clean underwear..

"Once you're done here, we're going to give you a haircut. Okay?" Annabel asked.

"Sure." Brock left the room, and Annabel made to as well, until Ash took his shirt off.

"Annabel, come on."

"One second..." She whispered with her cheeks red. Then she hurried out of the room. Ash kicked the door shut, and locked it whilst breathing in for a moment.

"… I wouldn't have minded if she stayed..." He muttered.

Brock, being the wisest of the group, shook his head and grimaced at Annabel. "Here I thought you were more humble than the others. I didn't know you had it in you." Annabel blushed and looked down.

"I was checking to see if he had any scars, actually."

"Sure, that's all, wasn't it? C'mon Annabel, that's the oldest trick in the book!"

Zoe stepped out of her room, dressed in her casual attire. She was rocking her orange jacket and red top again.

"Hey, guys. What's up?" She said with a grin.

"Nothing much. Annabel just tried to perve on Ash." Brock smirked and Annabel lightly hit him on the arm.

Zoe laughed at her and said, "Oh, Annabel. You've missed him haven't you?"

The lavender haired tomboy rubbed her arm with nervousness. She did not respond.

A short while later, Ash came out of the bathroom. Annabel and Brock then proceeded to cut his hair.

"Well? What do you think?"

Annabel gave Ash a mirror. He looked at his new haircut, trying to make up his mind about it. His hair reached down till his neck, unlike before when it had reached down much further. It was an odd feeling, not having as much hair, but it reminded him of the glory days a little bit. The bangs still covered his left eye, but now it looked cleaner than it ever had. He ran his hands through it and realised something extraordinary.

"It's clean," He commented. "It's actually clean." The sound of running water subsided and an annoyed Brock emerged from the bathroom.

Brock sighed and said, "It had better be clean, you neeed the whole bottle of shampoo to sort it out!"

Ash simply glared at him, simply thinking about hurrying back to his Pokémon training before it was too late and his match with Guzma started.

Max approached to group, beaming from ear to ear with something in his hands.

"Hey Ash, look what I found!" Max beamed at the older trainer. Ash looked down at the offering: a red cap with a green Pokeball on it. Ash looked at it, and his face was utterly unreadable. He could have been overjoyed, he could've been livid, Max had no idea..

"Ah." He said as memories flooded him. "My old hat. From Hoenn." He said faintly. He wasn't sure how to react, so he firmly gripped it in his hands. He embraced the nostalgia contained within the red baseball cap and drowned himself in adventures past.

Max grinned. "Yeah, I found it my suitcase. I got it from your mom a few years ago." Max smiled at the trainer gleefully, eager to impress the older trainer. He felt that the new Ash was too dark, and brooding, and depressed. He had waited far too long to see his old mentor after what his sister did to him, and damn it, she wasn't going to hurt him again.

Ash went quiet as he remembered his mother. Possibly the nicest mother he could've hoped to have. Having seen the hat, memories started to fly about in his head. Yes, Ash was never as clever as the other children in Pallet Town. Yes, he always got deplorable grades during the little time Delia could send him to school for, yet never once was she cruel to him. He missed her more than he had ever hoped to realise. Perhaps a trip back was in order...

No. Not as Don Satoshi.

Now, he needed to break it to Max that he couldn't WEAR the hat at all, even if he wanted to."Max, if I wore this out in public, I'm sure people would recognise me." Ash frowned. The boy was crestfallen and looked down at the hardwood floor. Feeling bad, Ash rubbed his head with his hand. "But I'll keep it. In fact," He started to smirk. He tightened the strap on the back till the hat was small enough for someone else to wear. It wasn't a perfect fit, but he gave it a try.

"Pikachu, here." He said. Pikachu grinned and wore the hat on his head. He struck one of Ash's classic poses, and raised his paws up to the sky. He looked so cute in it that Max and Annabel cooed at the little mouse.

Ash rolled his eyes at the Electric Mouse's shenanigans and gathered up the sliced hairs on the floor. After disposing of them, the four of them walked into the living room. Ash sat down on the sofa, Brock sat on the brown armchair opposite to the sofas, and Annabel went to get a glass of water.

"So Ash, how was training this morning?" Paul asked. Ash froze for a moment, and then turned his stare into a hateful glare. He looked ready to kill with those eyes.

"Cathartic," was all that Ash said. His tone was bitter and icy.

"Huh? What does that mean?" Max asked. Ash looked away. Zoey cast him a worried look.

"Ash? What happened?" Annabel asked demandingly, taking a seat next to him on the sofa. She was happy to sit next to him, and relished the opportunity. She sat a few millimetres away from him. Paul, catching on, laughed to himself.

Ash, swallowing his pride, told them about his morning, "Trip followed me back to my camp. He wanted to get rid of Don Satoshi and discovered my true identity."

Annabel gasped in surprise, then she clenched her fist. If Trip did anything to hurt Ash...

"He started arguing with me, and after a while we both got super upset-."

Paul's eyes widened as he said that. Max almost spat out his drink in shock. The afternoon news wasn't exaggerated at all. Trip really DID get his ass handed to him.

"So that's what that was about... I should have known that you had something to do with it."

"What?" Ash asked.

Paul shook his head. "Only you, Ash. Only you could do something like that to somebody."

The bespectacled boy and the purple haired trainer uttered. Ash glared at them for a moment, analysing their reaction to what he had said.

Max regained his composure and grinned admirably at Ash.

"You CRUSHED him, didn't you?"

"Then he-hey, how do you know about that?"

The group broke into laughter, causing Ash to look around angrily.

"So, he must've spread the word then? About me?" Ash growled.

"No, no, no," Annabel giggled. "I think he's STILL running away from you. He took the first boat out of Kalos back to Unova, he's out of the Tournament for good!" Paul, sensing Ash's anger at being kept in the dark, grabbed the remote and turned on the T.V. The first channel was the news, which was displaying footage from a local security camera.

A figure with dirty blond hair was seen running across the city as though something were caught in his pants. The news anchor was discussing the situation on the footage. "... In other news, Trip Urbs was seen fleeing from the Pokémon Master's Tournament. The reason for this appears to be the mysterious Don Satoshi, who is renowned for defeating Misty Waterflower in three minutes and several other trainers in the tournament, shattering several world records and all expectations from every single Battle Analyst..."

Paul changed the channel and put on the Top Trainer channel, and the news anchor THERE said,

"Today, the mysterious overnight sensation, Don Satoshi, is said to have battled Trip Urbs and utterly crushed him in a three-on-three match. It's unknown what Pokémon or tactics he used in the battle, but one thing is for..." Paul kept flicking. The live comedy channel was making jokes about him 'Tripping Over'. The leader board channel changed to adapt to an esteemed Champion being absent, and people were changing their bets on who would win. Ash no longer needed to imagine him running away from the tournament in his soiled pants. He began to visualise the priceless look on Trip's face as he ran away from Kalos. Max cheered for Ash, for he defeated the abominable

Whilst Ash was grinning about defeating Trip, Annabel was remembering why she was so drawn to him when he challenged her during the Battle Frontier.

Annabel looked at Ash fondly. For someone so young, he was frighteningly powerful. Despite all that he had been through, his eyes reflected not only sheer hatred and mercilessness, but her empathetic power allowed her to sense love in his heart. However, she could also sense something else in there: something that was simply pure evil. Something that had no place in the world.

In the end they shared in the humour behind Max's joke. However, Brock was pouting. Max noticed him brooding there and decided to ask about it. He was the closest he had to a brother, after all.

"Brock? You okay?" Max asked.

"I'm fine, Max. It's 'Mr. Champion' we need to worry about." He said slowly. Before anyone else could say anything, Paul's eyes narrowed and he groaned in misery.

"OH, SHIT! That's right!" He snapped and slammed the table with his fist. The plates (as well as Ash and Annabel, who were awkwardly enjoying each other's presence) jumped at the impact.

"Hey! Max is here, so watch the language! I don't want him talking like you do!" Zoey snapped at him. Paul sighed and apologised to her.

"What's wrong? Why're you upset?" Ash asked. "Tell me!"

Brock sighed with worry. Paul began to explain the predicament. "When you defeated Trip, he went around screaming, 'Don Satoshi kicked my ass!' and the news is all over the world."

Brock continued, "Ash, back when you were still a licensed trainer, there was a clause in the Pokémon League rulebook which said that if a Champion was defeated in an official match they would have to surrender their title, but not during an unofficial battle."

Ash nodded. "Right, what about it?"

Paul chuckled. Everyone observed the sudden change in his mood. He had a look in his eye- the type that came with cathartic pleasure. "Trip wouldn't have been able to defeat the Unova Elite Four, so he challenged Alder for the Championship indirectly. Since he was friends with Damien, they changed the rulebook just so that they could keep Damien quiet about... things which the League was involved in: now, if a Champion loses a battle, official or unofficial, they surrender the title anyway."

"But that doesn't explain how he beat Alder, Paul!" Ash asked.

Paul rubbed his chin a little bit as he remembered how it happened.

"Trip bribed a referee, who put some kind of handicap on the match to make it more 'even'. I think it was drugging Trip's Pokemon to increase their power or something. He also asked for a one-on-one match."

Ash began to put two and two together. Suddenly it dawned on him: they were, technically, Champions!

In a moment of quietness, he called Pikachu to his side.

"Did you hear that, Pi? We're Champions now! Champions of Unova!"

The Electric Mouse chirped happily and sparked his cheeks. Everyone smiled at how Ash celebrated the title amongst his team rather than just himself.

Max sniggered at the sheer irony of Trip's predicament. Trip had always been an arrogant fool and now, at last, he finally got what he deserves. The very nature of the situation was ironic, because Trip's manipulation of the rules was what caused him to lose his official title.

"Who will represent the Unova Region in the tournament if Trip's gone?" Paul asked.

Max shrugged. "The Pokemon League will probably ask Alder to battle in his stead instead."

Suddenly, Ash stopped in his tracks.

"Hang on..." He said. He turned his gaze to the Pokémon doctor.

"You acted like that was a BAD thing, Brock. Why?"

Brock sighed. "Ash, Trip left the tournament crying about how much better you were than him as a trainer. He didn't even pack his bags up. Causing that kind of a defeat to a recognised Champion can't be good news for your secret identity. I don't know how long it'll be until people try to come after you. You have to be careful, big guy."

Before there could be any further discussion, Lucario barged into the room. " _ **Ash, I sense the Aura of the woman that was defeated by Volcarona.**_ "

Ash jokingly replied, "Which one?"

" _ **The traitor**_!" Ash's eyes narrowed as he stared at the door.

At once, there was a knock. The timing was too perfect, it had to be something to do with Ash.

"I'll get it," Paul said. He regretted opening the door.

"Don't..." Ash whispered.

Outside was an apologetic redhead with a weak smile on her face. Before Misty could say anything Paul slammed the door in her face. Misty was more determined than that, however, and rang the doorbell.

The doorbell rang. Paul froze in his tracks and then went back to the door. Opening it slightly, he glared at her hatefully.

"Get out." He said vehemently. He tried to shut the door but Misty put her foot in between the door and the frame.

Much to his surprise, she didn't respond aggressively or rudely. His instincts told him something was wrong with her and he started to worry.

"Paul, I just wanted to say something to you and Max and all of the others. Please just let me in once, and I promise, I'll never bother you again." She pleaded. Paul glared at her, then looked into the room.

Everyone in the room looked at Ash for approval, and he gave a hesitant nod.

"Hi," she introduced herself and stood in the middle of the room. She was slightly intimidated and surprised by Don Satoshi's presence since she had no idea they were friends with him.

"So, after I lost my match the way I did, I realised that the reason I lost wasn't because Don Satoshi was too strong- well, he was, but... it was also I was training my Pokemon the wrong way. Like, I used violence to train them, and I hurt them when they wouldn't obey me."

They all glared at Misty for the way she had acted in the past. As if any of this was new to them. Ash in particular was disgusted by her antics.

"But, I sort of realised that it was my fault I ended up like this. Because if I still had someone good in my life," she emphasised the word 'good'. "Like, three years ago, I fell in love with that creep Damien, and I supported him no matter what because I thought that if I was like him he would love me back. Maybe, if I had just followed my heart that day rather than my greed, I wouldn't have lost my best friend in the entire world."

Max wanted to stop her from bringing Damien up in front of Ash, but the dark trainer raised a hand to halt him from doing it. Her change of heart made him intrigued and he felt compelled to hear her out.

"But I now know that people like him are self-centred scum who only go after pretty girls that catch their eye. I secretly hated that stupid jerk face for what he did to everyone around him after... the incident in court. After I lost my match to you, Don Satoshi, Damien dragged my ass back to my hotel and beat the crap out of me. He hurts like hell, and believe me, he's interested in hurting you too."

Don Satoshi scoffed. "Is that any way to live? Blindly loving gets you nowhere fast. It only brings you pain. Look, you followed this guy into the depths of hell, and now you have nothing left. It's all your fault that this is happening and you just need to suck it up!" He snapped.

Misty sighed at how right he was. But no, she didn't get annoyed by him. She vowed to let go of all of her anger, because it was what got her in this mess in the first place. Even standing up she felt smaller than Don Satoshi, who was emitting a dark aura from his body. On the inside, the cool, calculating Ash Ketchum was thoroughly enjoying this.

Ash amusedly observed how the tables had gone and turned in his favour. Once, Misty and Iris had hurt him so badly that he came crying to his mother, who comforted him like she would in his childhood. Misty had single-handedly trashed her own reputation, just like Damien had done to Ash, except this was just one live Pokemon battle. Misty and all of her little friends had made Ash suffer far more than she had to right now, an at last she would know the pain.

But was it right to leave her to suffer like this?

No. It wasn't. Vengeance and anger weren't the solution, he told himself. He decided it was time to man up, because Misty had come to apologise (although he was FAR from accepting it), and had lost all of her fame and fake friends.

Zoey and Brock sat Misty down and after she had settled down, Ash decided the time was right to come clean.

"Oh, I just remembered the whole reason I came to see you losers..." Misty muttered, thinking no one could hear.

Well, she had her chance... Ash was secretly delighted by her response, because it would mean that later, Sceptile, Pikachu and Charizard still had a chance to get their revenge.

"You see, after I got defeated, my defeat was apparently 'embarrassing' the Pokémon League. Since this is the last strike on my Elite Four license, I'm no longer entitled to private funding from the League Association. That means I lose the free food and training facilities, and the discounts at the Trainer markets, but I'm also not allowed to stay in the hotel room any more..." She said.

Out of her pockets she produced an electronic card of some kind. The number '493' was on it. Ash frowned, knowing that the Legendaries had something to do with this. That number MEANT something, but Ash wasn't sure what...

"I have the key to my suite in the hotel but I can't use it any more. The League has ordered me to leave because I didn't live up to their standards, and I have to give my room up to another trainer of high enough calibre. Would any of you like to take it?"

"That's awful, just kicking someone out like that... can they do that?" Annabel asked, trying to be polite and dignified about her situation.

"Well, I signed the shitty little contract so I don't have much choice, Annabel..." Misty mumbled. So much for that, the Frontier Brain thought.

Max snorted and Zoey berated him for being impolite.

"Wait. Isn't that the same hotel which has Damien Michaels in it?" Paul said with a weary smile. "Who would want THAT?" He laughed softly.

"Yeah but... I have to give it away by tonight or I'll have to pay it off." Misty sheepishly admitted. The others glared at her, angry that she only showed up to pawn off her room key.

"I'll take it." Ash declared.

The group looked at him. He was the last person they expected to take up the offer.

"Ash? Please don't tell me you want the hotel room for the reason I think you want it..." Paul warned.

He couldn't tell them that the real reason he wanted the hotel room, since he hadn't explained that he was the Chosen One to them yet. After learning to use his Aura senses, he sensed that most of the Legendary Pokemon were in the Kalos Celestios Hotel. If he wanted to free them, then this was his ticket to doing so. He remembered Arceus' broken and withering body. His mission was of utmost importance. Perhaps this is why that number was on the room key? Now all he needed was a plausible excuse...

"Well, it's where all the Champions and Elites are. I'm certain that this will be a great training opportunity."

Misty flushed, slightly jealous of his dedication. "Erm, okay then. Here's the key," Misty passed it to him, and he caught the keyring around his finger, spinning it around amusedly. Ash smirked at her and she stood up.

"Bye, guys!" She said sweetly. She got up and exited through the front door. Lucario growled at her and barked vehemently at her back.

"Well, my match is in two hours. I'll get my Pokemon from the forest and check into the hotel room, alright?"

They all nodded. "Just be careful, Ash." Annabel whispered. With the stories of the past three years Ash had to spend weighing heavily on her mind, they couldn't help but worry about him.

"We'll come to visit you soon! You did promise we could battle one day!" Max reminded him.

"I haven't forgotten, Max. If you're good, I'll even show you some tips. C'mon, Pikachu. C'mon, Lucario."

Ash left the villa and walked towards the forest where his Pokemon were hard at work. He shut the door behind him and left the private estate.

Pikachu poked his head out of the bag and glared at his partner, cheeks growling wildly.

 _ **"That was unlike you, Ash."**_ Pikachu said.

"It was, huh?" He replied. He flung his hands over his back and walked to the woods.

"What can I say? I'm growing up, I guess." He laughed.

 _ **"Ash, why didn't you tell me Misty was there? You KNOW how badly I wanted to punish her for everything she's done. Why did you let her go?"**_

Ash sighed. "Well, for starters, I thought she had changed," he said. "Second off, we needed this room key. Now, we can commence stage two of Operation: Liberate the Legendaries!" He exclaimed. Pikachu sweatdropped at the name of Ash's plan.

Once he had reached the clearing, he got their attention by snapping a rotten log in half with a single slice. Ash smirked as they all froze and turned to face him.

They stopped their training and they all looked at him in surprise, unaware of just how powerful the Legendary Pokemon's Aura training was making him.

"Look at that, I'm almost as strong as Pidgeot." He laughed. He did a head count: his team was all there, Mew and Latias included.

Ash whistled them in and gave them one instruction: "Everyone, listen up," He began.

"Because of the way we defeated Trip, people are starting to become aware of our power. In fact, by technicality, we're all Champions of the Unova region, so... Congratulations, I suppose?"

They looked around at each other, somewhat confused, before Sylveon finally decided to applaud on the team's behalf. It was one of the rare moments that made them a team. Ash chuckled a little bit at her antics.

"Anyway, I myself can't stay here any more, because it's unsafe. Trip found us way too easily, and I'm not going through that crap again. We almost lost everything we worked so hard for then and there. However, I do have a place to stay Misty gave me a key to a room in the hotel where the people who stole the Legendary Pokémon are. Who's interested?" The team looked at each other and shrugged. They weren't really interested in moving location, and as wild creatures the idea of hotels seemed stupid to them.

 _ **"Wait a minute...**_ ** _Wasn't Misty one of the traitors, Ash?"_** Sceptile pointed out, with a heinous growl. " **You seem to have forgotten what she did to you."** The Jungle Pokemon snarled. Ash nodded. "That's right, but she actually came to apologise to Brock and Max, and all of the others for what she had done. She realised that she made a mistake in trusting Damien, but she eventually let me down when she called us losers." Sceptile pouted, unsure of whether Ash made the right choice or not.

Charizard looked very unhappy. " _ **When do I get to fight, Ash? First Misty, then Trip. When does it stop!**_ " The Flame Pokemon roared.

Ash sighed. It was time to pull out the big guns. Now he could kill two birds with one stone.

"Well, not only are there plenty of Legendary Pokémon to fight along the way, but the traitors are there as well." He said. Charizard suddenly snapped to attention. Feraligatr growled and bore his claws.

" _ **Ash, can I point out that it's nowhere near as safe in the hotel as it is in here?"**_ Sylveon told him angrily. Ash rolled his eyes at the Intertwining Pokemon.

"Well, yeah… That's why I'm not bringing Pikachu with me." He said. The others looked at him in surprise. Since when did Ash ever stay separate from Pikachu? Sylveon was almost certain that he was completely bonkers.

However, someone was happy with this new arrangement. _**"Then one thing is settled: I will go with you. I've been waiting YEARS for this."**_ Charizard smirked. _**"Count me in as well. I want to see those traitors get their just desserts."**_ Sceptile declared. In a minute, they made their choices. It was a tough decision, but he finally decided on six Pokémon to come with him.

"Okay, Pikachu, I need you to stay behind, because if people see you, they'll instantly know who I am. Stay here and make sure everyone's okay." Pikachu nodded bravely.

 _ **"Anything for the mission, Ash!"**_

"Charizard, Lucario, Noivern, Pidgeot, Sceptile, and Sylveon: you guys come with me. The rest of you, I will see tomorrow. Is that okay? And if anyone comes here, you guys are just wild Pokemon and you are to flee to outside of the hotel, okay?" They all nodded and agreed with him.

" _ **Lord Arceus, Ash is going to the hotel now.**_ _"_

" _Excellent. All is going to plan, Ho-Oh."_

 _Two hours ago, in the Hall Of Origin:_

In the great room in which Arceus spoke to the other Legendary Pokemon, he stared at a great cosmic wall depicting the Chosen One's time in exile. He compared it to another 'screen' depicting his time as a happy trainer in the Pokemon League. Immediately, rays of darkness flooded his view of the universe. Suddenly, the wall shattered and the sound was louder than human words can describe. The pieces of the screen flickered between pitch black and a distorted images.

Letting out a sigh powerful enough to extinguish the sun, Arceus proceeded to cough violently and collapse to the floor.

" _ **Father!"**_ Ho-Oh squawked, hearing the sound of the screen. He flew up to Arceus' throne and confronted the Alpha Pokemon, who was trembling violently.

" _ **Father, what is troubling you?"**_ The Rainbow Pokemon cried. Arceus stood up, still trembling and the wall, flickered faster. It changed into an image of a destroyed world with a single figure, bruised but still standing above a crowd of defeated people and Pokemon. The world was in complete ruin. Arceus let out a grunt and put the screen back together. The image was less clear, since it was not an event that had happened truly happened yet.

" _It's Ash… The darkness in his heart has changed the course of the future of world. On his own, his broken heart will lead to the destruction of humanity."_

Ho-Oh cawed slightly. _**"What is to be done, Father? Ash is the Chosen One!**_ _"_

The Alpha Pokemon grunted. _"_ _The future is under threat from the darkness in Ash's heart. In order to prevent this, he may need closure from those who betrayed him."_

Ho-Oh thundered and the room became crimson from the wrath of his fire.

" _ **Shall we exact a toll on the them?**_ _"_ Ho-Oh roared.

" _No, because then Ash will only have temporary satisfaction, not love or happiness,_ _"_

" _I have a plan, Ho-Oh. I will set the pieces in motion."_

" _ **But WHAT, Father? What do you want from thim?"**_

Arceus walked to the wall and it turned into a window of the universe. The birth of a nearby star told him what to do.

" _There are many girls that were smitten with the old, happy Ash. Perhaps if we gather them together, he can feel happiness again and overcome the darkness..."_

* * *

The Regnum Hotel was grand: two huge, attention-grabbing columns held up a grand arch that was decorated with a soft green colour. The hotel reached up to the clouds and had thousands of lights coming out of it. Noivern, circling the building, landed on the steps outside of the hotel. Ash hopped off of Noivern's back and landed on the pavement. "Thanks, Noivern. I think inside the hotel, they might ask me to return you into the Pokeball." The Sound Wave Pokemon grunted and walked in.

The hotel was even fancier inside than out, with a checkered floor, and a red ceiling and black walls. Everything about the lobby screamed 'sophistication, sophistication, sophistication', something that was more than foreign to Ash.

Don Satoshi handed his key in to the receptionist, who had a stretched-out smile on her face. Ash assumed it was from the stress she was under. She scanned the card through a machine and faced him.

"Ah, Ms. Waterflower's room. Name, please?" He couldn't avoid this twisted feeling from his gut when he talked to her.

"Don. Don Satoshi." He answered coldly. However, the look on her face told her all that he needed to know. A menacing Aura came from her body, and Ash's eyes narrowed at her.

"REAL, name, sir." Ash's eyes narrowed. He leaned in and whispered in her ear, "My name is Ash Ketchum."

The receptionist made a twisted smile and nodded.

"Fourth floor, enjoy your stay!" Ash glared at her. How did she know he was using a fake I.D? He glared at her, and suddenly, the vicious Aura vanished and she suddenly seemed… Normal. Whatever malevolence was haunting her vanished into thin air.

He walked up the stairs with Noivern and he opened the door with a key. It was a beautiful room, with lots of space. It had a huge TV, two beds, and two large stained glass windows. He had a nice view of the coast (he understood why Misty enjoyed this room), and the lights were nice and bright.

Noivern quietly turned around and glared at the wall. "I know that you're there," Ash said.

" _ **Impressive, Ash. You've changed a lot…"**_ Two green lights appeared and two Zygarde Cores were visible on the beds.

"Squishy! Z2!" Ash smiled. The two Zygarde smiled and raced forward to hug him. Ash grinned and hugged them both.

"What're you guys doing here?" He asked, happy to see the two after three years.

" _ **We are the protectors of the Kalos region, and we sensed something was gravely amiss as soon as word about this Tournament got out."**_

Ash smiled. "So, you got that, too..." He said faintly. Squishy and Z2 looked at each other and nodded.

" _ **Ash, Z2 and I know about what happened to you. Arceus told us everything. And we're not about to sit here and let you try and capture all of the Legendaries on your own. We're here to help you recapture all of the Shadow Pokemon and taking down the League!"**_ Squishy exclaimed.

Ash nodded. "Alright. Welcome to the family." He said. Z2 and Squishy produced a crimson Pokeball with a navy blue underside, with a green hexagonal pattern on the band in the middle.

" _ **We're here for you, Ash!"**_ Z2 explained. Ash smiled and put the Pokeball in his bag. Noivern grinned at the sight of his old friends.

Ash looked and the clock and then back at the Pokemon on the bed.

"It's seven fifty, I am getting really late!" He exclaimed. He legged it and rushed down the stairs. Z2 and Squishy hopped into the Pokeballs in Ash's hand and Noivern flew after him.

A tall woman with blonde hair going down to her back and covering her left eye caught sight of the raven-haired trainer rushing through the lobby. Sinnoh Champion, Cynthia Shirona saw him, and she was reminded of a trainer she knew from several years ago. The fiery Ash Ketchum, the younger trainer who constantly challenged and reinvented his team and strategies constantly. The fire in his eyes. The compassion in his heart. He was unlike any boy she had ever met, constantly travelling and becoming more experienced.

She heard about how Ash's reputation was dragged through the dirt by that scumbag, Damien. The Kanto 'Champion' was an obnoxious little boy who constantly flirted with her despite having THREE girlfriends. He was the same thing, all the time: always thrusting himself into literally everything.

The minute she heard that Ash was accused of breaking into Professor Oak's research facility, she knew that Ash would never do that. She was so confident in him, and had so much faith in him, that she expected him to pull through on his own. She was happy to see that he made it out of court, declared not guilty, but when news broke out that he ran away she personally blamed herself for not extending her support to him. She spent so many nights in her home quietly sobbing to herself, about how she could've prevented that boy, the boy, the boy she was absolutely smitten with.

And there was THIS man. Don Satoshi, with the Volcarona. His cold, ruthless attitude threatened the status of the arrogant Champions, like Lance and Damien. The way that they talked about him was as though they were describing a vengeful demon.

The black hair. The mystery. Who WAS he? Where did he come from? Yes, she was curious in him.

As she watched the raven haired young man leave, she realised that he looked about sixteen- the same age that Ash would be at this point. The Noivern that followed behind him was also one of the Pokemon Ash had used in the Kalos League.

"Hmm," She said out loud. " _It can't be a coincidence. Don Satoshi, just who are you?"_ She thought. She smirked and called out her Garchomp. At first, she wasn't interested, but now she wanted to see his battle against the Alolan trainer, Guzma.

The receptionist from earlier, having seemingly recovered from whatever was haunting her, shouted, "Mr. Satoshi, your car awaits!" As he opened the main door to leave. Unfortunately, someone else heard him saying that...

From the pavement, a voice sneered at him, "Well, well! If it isn't the LOSER from Pallet Town!"

Ash turned around swiftly on his ankle and glared at the person who said that with all of his hatred.

"Who would've thought that you'd show your face again? Certainly not me!" The blonde young man said. He had short hair and a blue coat with a yellow polo shirt, and a blue pair of jeans. He had a healthy complexion, and no longer wore his glasses. His eyes didn't shine with academic curiosity, but rather avarice and lust.

"Who the hell are- no... no way... You're Clement, aren't you? Where's your little jumpsuit?" He asked.

The boy sniggered. "Yes, that's right, Ash. It's me. Happy to see your old friend? Well guess what? He's not happy to see you."

Ash shook his head. "Feeling's mutual, buddy. Not after what you did to me."

Clement flinched. "What... how do you- erm, I mean, what're you on about?"

Ash moved down the steps to stare Clement in the eye. Clement felt a primal terror as he looked in Ash's primal Aura.

"You. You KNEW that I was innocent." He said calmly.

"Yet you told everyone that I wasn't so that you could get paid by Damien. Did you get your money, or did he cheat you out of that as well as your integrity?" He said confidently. Clement groaned.

"I see... I take it that Trip must've told you..." He muttered.

"So how did you know I was Ash Ketchum?" Don Satoshi demanded to know. The dark Winter sky hung over them. A few people were coming and going, but the two were mostly concealed in the darkness.

"It was very, very apparent from the way you fought. Sure, you've changed a lot, but when you fought Misty it was like you were trying to torture her somehow. Only one person would hate her that much, and that person is you."

Ash put his hands in his pockets and walked away He would have to keep an eye on Clement from now on, but suddenly, Clement grabbed him and threw him to the ground.

Clement had Ash on the cold concrete, and slammed his foot into his torso as hard as he could. Ash restrained himself before he could accidentally destroying him.

"What the hell...?"

"Now, listen to me, Ketchum. It's your fault that my heart is broken!"

" _Noivern, don't kill him yet_." He told Noivern using his Aura commands.

They both knew that Ash could easily get out of Clement's grip if he wanted to. Ash, however, was curious in Clement's long and sorry tale.

"What're you talking about?" He asked.

Clement growled. "Do you remember Serena? Yes, of course you do, you loved her to pieces. There was another reason I ratted you out in court, and that was because of what you did to me." Ash scowled at him saying that.

"Let me tell you exactly what happened..."

* * *

 _Three years ago..._

 _They were somewhere near Pallet Town, near the forest, by a river._

 _This was after Damien came into their lives and Ash forfeited his license. May, Dawn, and Serena were sitting by a pond, having a picnic. Off in the distance, Ash could see his younger self, Brock, and Max playing in the pond. Clement was working on a new machine, but seeing Damien with the girls made him envious and he just glared._

 _"Hi, ladies," Damien said to the girls. Smugly, he said it._

 _"Hi, Damien!" They smiled at him. Damien ginned and sat down with them._

 _"How cute is Ash, Serena?" Dawn smiled. Serena went red in the face and stammered, "W-what? What are you talking about, Dawn?" She flushed. Dawn giggled._

 _Damien, although livid at seeing the cute girl staring at another guy, played it cool and asked, "What's the deal with him?" He said, somewhat condescendingly._

 _Dawn giggled. "Serena likes Ash," Serena, in response, would've barked at her about it till the Miltank AND the Tauros_ _came home until May stopped her from ranting about it._

 _"What about you, Dawn?" May asked deviously. "What do YOU think of Ash? Say what you will, but you talk about him more than Serena does!"_

 _"May, I only asked her if she thought he was cute. What was wrong with that?" She asked. "I mean it's not like he's THAT cute," She said, intentionally drawing her words out._

 _"WHAT! ASH MIGHT JUST BE THE CUTEST GUY IN THE WORLD!" May exclaimed so loud that Brock looked up from the pond to see what was going on. Dawn was grinning from ear to ear._

 _"Careful May, your boyfriend might hear you..." She whispered. Serena laughed at May, who had turned red with embarrassment. With her bandana, she really DID look like a tamato berry,_

 _"Can I something hear?" Damien smirked. "I heard that Ash just leaves Pokémon on that ranch and forgets 'em. Is that anyway for a 'cutie-pie' to behave?" He told them._

 _"I suppose you're right..." May said quietly. She had known Ash the longest out of those three and knew that it was true._

 _That was just the beginning of the poison Damien left in their minds._

 _Ten months later..._

 _By the exact same pond, Ash and Clement were helping Serena train for her first Grand Festival with Dawn and May, who were training with Damien elsewhere._

 _Ash and Clement were yawning and exhausted, but they persevered anyway._

 _"C'mon, Serena! You're doing great!" Ash cheered. Serena rubbed her am, slightly insecure._

 _"Um, thanks Ash." She said with a hint of bitterness. Ash frowned, but_ _kept going with the training. "Glallie, try using your Ice Shard attack!"_

 _"Braixen, use Fire Blast." Serena ordered briskly. Ash gasped._

 _The blast of fire soared through the air and enveloped Glalie. The incinerating kanji symbol sent Glalie spiralling into the water._

 _"Glalie!" Ash screamed. He dove straight into the pond to get his Pokémon and picked him up from the water. After he got back, both of them were drenched from head to toe, and as knocked out GLALIE instantaneously, and the terrified Ice-type shivering wildly. Serena shook her head._

 _"Ash, how can you expect Glalie to get stronger if you keep helping it?" Serena said, somewhat bored._

 _"W-what? You hurt Glalie like that and now you_ _'_ _re_ _pinning_ _the blame on me?" Ash told her._

 _Serena groaned. "How do I explain this... Ash, Damien taught me that Pokémon don't learn their lesson unless you punish them for making the mistake. Glalie should've been stronger and he suffered for being weak!"_

 _Ash gasped. "How can you say that? Serena, Damien is WRONG! You have to see that! He hurts his Pokémon and treats them like filth!"_

 _"You'd know all about that."_

 _Suddenly, Ash stopped. "What're you saying?"_

 _Serena returned Braixen and closed her eyes. "Ash, face it. You just catch Pokémon, play with them for a bit, then leave them at Oak's lab to spend the rest of their lives alone! At least Damien USES his Pokémon! You say he treats them like filth but you treat them like broken toys!" Ash growled and got angrier and angrier. Why was Serena being so awful?_

 _He let go of his anger, cradling Glalie in his arms, and hissed Serena._

 _"You've changed, Serena. You've changed."_ _Ash walked back to his house with tears in his eyes._

 _"I just cant be seen with you any more." She said to him. He froze. Then he kept walking._

 _She went to Clement and said, "Clement, he just doesn't get it, does he?"_

 _Clement smiled faintly and answered her by saying, "I know Serena. Maybe..." He whispered. "Maybe you need to move on from him." Serena looked alarmed._

 _"WHAT..." She shook her head. "But he's so... You saw him training with me, he can't-" She stopped._

 _Maybe you're right..."_

 _"Maybe you should get a nice, smart guy who's a lot better than Ash is?" He suggested subtly._

 _"You're right! I'll call Damien, in fact!"_ _She said ecstatically._

 _Clement scowled as she ran off. He glared at Ash, because it was his fault that he had just been completely friend zoned by his crush._

 _Six days later..._

 _Serena was frantically applying her makeup. Panicky, panicky, panicky. On her make-up table, there were bottles and cases of hairspray, contour, mascara, foundation, eye-liner, and eye-shadow. The mirror before her reflected a face of pure heavenly beauty._

 _A knock on the door reminded her that she was still alive._

 _"Come in," She yelled softly._

 _Ash walked into the room and saw her on the chair. Her hair looked like the sunlight to him, a mass of golden perfection._

 _"Hey Serena,"_

 _She saw his dishevelled form in the mirror. What happened to him? His hair had grown, completely untameable and covering his eyes. Why did he grow a fringe? He was paper thin and sickly. He was utterly terrifying!_

 _"Hey," Things were... Tense between the two. Ever since the incident, Damien and the others had a few words with Ash about what he did during the training session._

 _"I- I wanted to say..." He got cut off by Clement, carrying a bouquet of roses behind his back. "Oh, Serena, I am here to inform you that you are the most likely to win-"_

 _Clement got pushed back by a harsh hand. Damien stole the roses from behind Clement's back and walked through the door._

 _"Good luck in the Grand Festival." He said to the beautiful girl._

 _"Oh, Damien," She said._

 _In a moment of confusion, she looked at Ash one more time. Then, she kissed Damien on the lips. Right in front of both of them._

* * *

Ash wasn't really interested after a certain point. Something that Clement had said grabbed his attention however and he purely focused on that. His mind became consumed by that one thought, and he couldn't think of anything apart from it. Then, he reflected on everything Clement had said and his mind went in an over-drive state of pure fury.

"Wait. Did you say that she... she was in love with me?" His voice was heavy, as though it was all he cared about. His breathing was slow. His eyes were full of desire and lust.

"Tch, yeah! She loved you so damn much, she would've died for you! You have no idea how painful it was for me! Day in, day out, she'd ask me what to do! I'd tell to just wait, and hoped that nothing happened between you two!" He kicked Don Satoshi again and he winced a little.

"Now look, because you couldn't make a move, she got stuck in this relationship with that pig, Damien!" He hissed at him quietly. He frantically looked around, making sure that no one had heard him insult the 'hero of Kanto'. A few people looked at them oddly, thinking 'rich people nonsense'.

Ash mulled over what he said. Even Noivern was concerned about how deathly silent he was. Unbeknownst to either of them, Ash was actually storing his anger at Clement. Three years of sick, demonic hatred and Ash truly wore his mask of Don Satoshi.

Then, finally, he showed some signs of life: he turned to the Sound Wave Pokemon and mouthed three words:

"Give him hell." His fury was leaking like rays of fire from the sun itself

Noivern smirked, charging forwards and knocking Clement onto the ground, pinning him to the floor. Ash got back into his feet swiftly and glared at Clement's struggling form.

"Sorry Clement, but there's no way that's true. Also, how dare you kick me like that, you little monster! Noivern here is going to give you hell for that! "

"Noivern... Is going to take the silent treatment to the next level!" He laughed evilly.

Noivern grinned at Clement maniacally and Ash plugged his ears with his fingers whilst also smirking from ear to ear.

"Wait! What're you...? I'm your friend, remember? From Kalos! I saw you when you were born!" He tried to plead with the Dragon Pokemon. His words were drowned out by Noivern's attack.

"I've been waiting for this for a long time, you crappy excuse for a genius." Noivern hissed. Suddenly, vibrations were visible from Noivern's speaker-shaped ears. The air distorted because of the sheer power of his attack. Tremendous sound waves emerged from Noivern's body.

Noivern used Screech on him, right there, in close quarters, and Clement howled in fear. He bit his lips to numb the pain. The street lamps around the are shattered because of the range of mind-numbing frequencies Noivern was emitting. After a solid minute of literal verbal torture, Noivern got up and smirked at the traitor. Clement, his eardrums still banging wildly, couldn't hear his own voice as he slowly got up and pointed at Ash and said, "T-this isn't over! I'll get the police on you!"

"What will they do? Arrest YOU for lying in court? Arrest ME for self-defence?" He taunted. Clement turned red in the face and screamed at him childishly.

"Clement... You really hurt me when you betrayed me like that. I would've forgiven you, but now I will retract that offer. I thought that after what happened in Lumiose City, with Alain and Team Flare, that you were a really good person. Turns out you were a crappy friend."

Ash lifted him by the collar and stood him up on his own two legs.

"Clement, if you really want me to prove it, meet me at the city battlefield at nine o'clock. I will defeat you so badly that even Damien will fear my power." He said to him coldly.

This was the second reason he had come to the hotel: to take the traitors down a peg.

"Deal!" Clement said, fully flushed.

Ash smirked when he turned away and saw the limo parked in front of the building. For the first time in three years, he got into a car and sat in the back seat with a wide grin on his face.

"Where to, sir?" The driver asked. Ash smirked at the luxury. "Stadium B. I've got an ass to kick."

Before the match, in the depths of stadium A, horrible roars sounded throughout the sealed room. The sound of rattling chains was enough to scare any sane person, but not Silver Sakaki.

"Sit," He ordered the Team Skull boss. Guzma, slightly terrified, lowered himself onto a wooden crate containing a shiny Spinarak from abroad, which was ripe for whatever sinister experiment the Pokémon League was planning. Silver stood before him, his face devoid of any emotion.

"Today, when you fight Don Satoshi, I want you to destroy him. Your mission is to completely demoralise him and bring him to his knees. That's why I'm giving you this:" He handed him a blinking Pokeball that looked like some kind of complicated machinery. "This Pokémon will be your ticket to ending Ketchum- I mean Don, forever."

* * *

As they entered the town, just past the crowded mall, the limo drove into the VIP parking lot.

"Will you be taking the limo back?" The driver asked. Ash shook his head. "No, thanks. I'll be walking." The driver nodded and Ash emerged from the car with a smile.

Unfortunately for the team, Ash's rare moment of calm wouldn't last long. By the time they got to Stadium A, people had already filled up the seats. Outside were a few people. Some of the last few people Ash wanted to see.

Dressed in a red overcoat was the Top Co-Ordinator of Sinnoh. Dawn Berlitz was there. And with her were two boys, each dressed in fancy clothes- it was blindingly apparent that they were with Dawn, and they were both trying to impress her. Unfortunately, they were both bickering about some irrelevant nonsense and they were in the way.

Kenny and Conway, the two boys who were attempting to flirt with Dawn, wore expensive clothes and accessories. Kenny was dressed in an emerald suit, and Conway wore a teal coat with a yellow shirt.

" _These two, they betrayed me in that courtroom so that Damien would pay them,"_ He thought. " _But then again, they're flirting with one of Damien's girlfriends."_ It was then he realised that Kenny and Conway had lost their honour somewhere along the line and had no respect for anyone. He sighed, because such people were unworthy of such power and influence.

Dawn, on the other hand, was like a little sister to him. When he was in the Sinnoh League, he often trained her and helped her raise her Pokémon. It was natural, for that reason, for him to be upset when he saw her with another guy, but looking at her, he could see some kind of loneliness in her eyes. Some kind of longing, and when she looked at those two boys, the loneliness vanished and stress filled up within them.

" _It seems Kenny and Conway have changed a lot as well."_ He thought with slight disappointment. He walked up to the stadium entrance, past the trio from Sinnoh, only to get pushed down the stairs.

Thankfully, Ash was a skilled enough acrobat to flip down the stairs and safely land on the ground. He landed on his knees with a hand on the ground, in a way that made the boys jealous.

" _Damnit, everyone's pushing me today, what is going on?"_ He thought, somewhat annoyed.

"Excuse me," Kenny sneered. "We were here first, you... who even are you?"

"Don Satoshi. And I have a match to prepare for." His icy tone sent shivers down Kenny's spine.

Dawn sighed and slapped her hand against her forehead. "He's COMPETING, Kenny. He has a battle now, you moron."

Ash winced at how rude Dawn was being. Sure, Kenny messed up, but was it worth calling him that? Unfortunately, he didn't have time to think about because Conway pressed his face up right against him

"Fufufufu... So you are the legendary Don Satoshi. Are you aware that you are one of the most remarkable trainers here? Surely if I defeat you, that will prove I am a superior mate to that bumbling moron!" Conway suggested, pointing at Kenny.

"Hey!" Kenny snapped.

"Knock it off. Both of you. I don't want to be anyone's 'mate', also I have a boyfriend, and if I tell him about this..." Dawn threatened them both.

Kenny and Conway gasped in shock. "No... Please don't..." Conway begged.

"Yeah, Dee-Dee! Please don't tell Damien!" Kenny pleaded. Dawn narrowed her eyes at him. "Didn't I tell you to stop calling me that?" She snapped.

"YES MAM!" Kenny flushed and exclaimed. Ash groaned and made to go into the stadium again. He was amused at how easily they were influenced by Dawn. Unfortunately, the cheeky smirk didn't go unnoticed.

"As for you," Dawn said to Don. Her voice was seriously CHILLING. She was bitter, full of sass, and in a way, terrifying.

"I remember what you did to Misty. You're lucky you didn't get your license revoked for excessive force on the battlefield. Don't think you're off the hook, because you really hurt her feelings." She said coldly and commandingly.

Ash turned around and stared at her menacingly.

"Misty was the one who pushed her Pokémon that hard and failed to properly command them. She shouldn't have done that if she cared about them," He said. His blood was starting to boil. First Clement, now them...

Dawn had a retort ready but instead Kenny growled, "Dawn, let ME deal with him. You've got a match now? Meet me after on that battlefield and I'll show you where 'Caring for your Pokemon' gets you." Ash glared.

"I've already got a battle afterwards, kid. Don't waste my time." Kenny snorted and called him a weakling. Ash glared and walked straight through him. The sheer force of his Aura was enough to knock Kenny to the ground.

The way Dawn moved to help him, the amount of stress in her eye, the way she bit her lip when he dropped Kenny, told Ash all he needed to know.

"Dawn," He chuckled. "It seems Damien's not the only one interested in polygamy." Conway and Kenny were confused by that. Understanding the word, Conway's eyes widened as he said that. "How did you..."

"Then again, I guess you'd kiss anyone who can offer to fix that hole inside of your heart." He smirked.

He was right. Dawn looked down at the ground whilst Conway fumed at Don Satoshi. Dawn sobbed a little bit, but then wiped away her tears so that Damien wouldn't see them. Her day just kept getting worse and worse.

The stadium was actually built as a castle except with the features of a stadium, and it was probably the most peculiar out of the three lesser stadiums. The lobby was a grand courtyard, with four towers in each corner. All of the seats in the arena were integrated into the walls of the castle.

The centre of the stadium sported a small tower, and on top were two pillars on which he assumed the trainers would stand, which Ash assumed also contained the battlefield. Although many trainers had complained that the stadium was too big for a good fight, Ash thought the opposite.

' _Judging by the size of the field and the presence of those walls, we can't go all out in this stadium. We'll have to hold back,"_ He thought.

Ash approached the waiting room with his Don Satoshi face, but the Officer Jenny there was accompanied by a man in a black suit and sunglasses, who were barricading the entrance.

"Trainers only. Where's your I.D?" The man demanded. Ash froze on the spot and cringed. He didn't realise that he needed a license anymore: usually, he would just fly in through the roof of the other stadium.

"Young man, I'm going to need some I.D. Can't have any fanboys interrupting the trainers when they're preparing."

Ash gritted his teeth in frustration.

"I'm sure you have it in here, I'll help you find it." Jenny said. Ash's eyes flashed as she grabbed his bag and searched through it. Ash began sweating bullets.

" _What if she finds the handgun?"_ He panicked.

Immediately, both the man and the officer stopped in their tracks. Their eyes became hollow as the night sky. Their movement became robotic and unnatural, as though a ghost was haunting them.

"Alright, you may pass." Jenny said monotonously.

" _It's just like back at the hotel..."_ He thought.

"Um... thanks?" He said, somewhat unsure. He entered the locker room, and suddenly the door slammed shut behind him. The lights went out and the room turned black.

"Who's there?" Ash demanded. "Show yourself!"

From around the corner of the locker room appeared the illusion of a Pokemon. It had a single blue eye and a grey stack of smoke emerging from its' head. A red collar adorned its' neck.

" **Chosen One... Ash..**."

Ash narrowed his eyes at the Nightmare Pokemon.

"What do you want from me?" He asked. Immediately, his eye turned Azure as he summoned his Aura Powers. Darkrai's body flickered out of existence for a moment, and reappeared, like a broken light switch.

Darkrai emerged from the corner and staggered, falling to the floor. Ash approached Darkrai and lifted him onto the bench. Ash gave him support.

"Now tell me," Ash asked. "Who are you?"

The illusion flickered and Darkrai vanished momentarily.

" _I am Darkrai, and we have met before. Your tremendous power was worthy of my respect_."

Ash scratched his chin, unable to remember the Nightmare Pokemon.

"Were you the one from Alamos Town?" He asked the Nightmare Pokémon.

 _"_ ** _Yes_** _."_ He said.

 _"_ ** _After the clash at Alamos Town, I was nearly annihilated. All that was left of me was a fraction of my original form. In order to survive, I put myself to sleep and suffered from my own nightmares as a consequence, which damaged me even further,"_**

Ash nodded, holding Darkrai's head up as it wobbled around.

 _"_ ** _Afterwards, a man with blue hair found me and captured me. He brought me to a lab and experimented on me. They treated my wounds but didn't restore my power. They kept me starved and thirsty. The man, he attempted to use ancient knowledge in order to close the door to my heart_** _."_

"The door to your heart?" Ash asked worriedly.

" **As you humans may know it, he tried to make me into a Shadow Pokemon."** Ash's eyes narrowed. He sensed that the Pokemon League was involved with this.

 ** _"Fortunately, as a Dark type, the door to my heart was very dificult to shut. I put them under the illusion that I was one of those monsters and they took me for testing in the Sinnoh League. Where I fought you, Ash Ketchum."_**

 **Ash frowned. All that time ago, he felt accomplished for defeating the enigmatic Darkrai, but had no idea that it was the same one he had fought all that time ago.**

"That was a good fight, wasn't it, Sceptile?" Ash smiled and sent out Sceptile, who remembered battling Darkrai as well.

Darkrai quivered and coughed. Ash and Sceptile held him and gave him some berries that were in Ash's bag.

 _"Ah, thank you. As I was saying, I lost that battle and that was when the Pokemon League became suspicious of your talent, because I was one of the strongest Pokemon in the world at that time. They slowly poisoned your Pokemon with drugs and serums so that they wouldn't be strong enough to conquer me again. When that didn't work, however,_ " Darkrai stopped.

"What do you mean, they poisoned us?"

" ** _Ash, when you were in Unova, a 'virus' was going around Oak's laboratory. We were all injected with antibiotics, but I don't think that there were any viruses at all. I think it was all a lie!"_** Sceptile said.

" _Chosen One, please forgive me.._." Darkrai said.

"What...?" Ash asked.

"Darkrai?"

" **Because of your fast-growing ability as a trainer and indomitable will, the Pokemon League became afraid of your power. A man who was jealous of your popularity, Damien Michaels, was sent to destroy you psychologically."**

Ash made a fist and punched the wall in fury. He managed to leave an indentation in the wall, although his knuckles were sore.

"So, what did they do with you, Darkrai?" He snapped.

" ** _Tobias... Damien... They made me use my Nightmares to support them in turning your friends against you. I refused to do it at first, because you were my friend, but they beat me and whipped me until I was even worse than I was after meeting Dialga and Palkia._** **"**

Ash let go of Darkrai. Sceptile caught him safely, but Ash buried his face into his hands. They looked at him sadly as he remembered the betrayal.

"Why... why did they need to hurt you as well?" He whispered.

 _"_ _... When Damien and the others were bullying you in the daylight, I haunted your dreams at night_ _and made you depressed. They commanded me to and relished in your pain. They didn't have to do it, but Damien made me do it so that he could feel satisfied that you knew your place_."

Darkrai groaned, " **Chosen One, I have to apologise for this. Your disappearance, your transformation, it was all my** -"

"Don't even think that!" Ash ordered.

"Damien... Tobias... The Pokémon League... They all need to pay for this... Destroying me is one thing but attacking a Legendary Pokemon is another."

One thing was for certain: Ash definitely wasn't holding back. Darkrai's silhouette faded and travelled back to from whence it came.

He walked past the lockers and walked up the stairs, and kicked down the gates to the battle field with Sceptile accompanying him. Sceptile watched him wearily. Ash growled at his opponent viciously. Guzma looked at him, with the same look an insect bares to an encroacher: pure, reserved aggression.

" **Here it comes, ladies and gentlemen! The legendary Don Satoshi returns to fight the Alolan trainer known as Guzma!"** The announcer said.

"This," The referee said, "Will be a three-on-three Pokémon match between Don Satoshi of Sinnoh, and Guzma of Alola! Substitutions are allowed: now, trainers, let the battle begin!"

Ash didn't waste any time in sending out Volcarona. The Sun Pokémon worriedly looked back at her master. Yes, she had seen him in his incredible fury before, but never was she commanded by him when it happened.

"I've been looking forward to smashing you into dust all day!" Guzma grinned.

"..."

" **Don Satoshi gives Guzma the silent treatment. Is this a trick or what?"** The confused announcer said.

"Golisopod, let's give it our all!" He roared. The Hard Scale Pokémon appeared out of the Pokeball and landed on the ground. It gave a deep growl and stabbed at the air.

"Volcarona, Fire Blast." Ash ordered. It was as cold as Volcarona's fire was warm. Volcarona took to the skies and unleashed the kanji for flames from her body, and sent it hurtling towards Golisopod. Golisopod, however stuck up its' hand and used its' Waterfall attack to protect itself from the onslaught of devastating flames.

" **An often forgotten fact about Golisopod is that it is a Bug and Water type Pokemon. This mistake often throws NOVICE trainers off of their game."**

Ash gritted his teeth. _"DAMMIT!"_ He thought.

" _I had no idea that Golisopod was a Water type as well..."_

Ash's anger was taking over his judgement, and Sceptile, who was taking a seat in the corner, realised this too. The crowd gawked at what they believed was his starter Pokemon, who was quietly sitting in the corner with his eyes closed.

"Volcarona, use Fire Spin!"

"Golisopod, use Sucker Punch!" Golisopod's body became enveloped in a sinister mixture of black and purple, and it threw a lightning fast fist at Volcarona, who cawed and was sent spiralling backwards into the stadium wall.

Volcarona got up, staggering slightly. "C'mon Volcarona, you can do this!" He growled.

"Golisopod..." Guzma said cautiously. Golisopod took a bold stance and Ash's Aura could detect a hint of the dark power in its' fists again.

"Quiver Dance!" He said. Guzma growled as his attack failed.

"WILD CHARGE! NOW!" He snapped. Volcarona hesitated. Golisopod's SIX muscular arms terrified her, but if it was an order, what choice did she have?

Her body sparkling electric, she rushed forwards and rammed into Golisopod's Water Pulse attack. However, during her earlier moment of hesitation, Golisopod had launched a water-type attack. The attack stunned her for a bit, but Golisopod rammed into her with an Aqua Jet and knocked her straight out.

"Volcarona..." Ash growled. "...RETURN." He said.

The crowd cheered for Guzma.

" **Would you look at that, folks, Don Satoshi. for the first time in the tournament, is now down a Pokémon! Will this be the end of his success in the tournament?"**

Ash scowled hatefully. He realised that he wasn't thinking rationally during that round. He would need to calm down and focus.

In the stands, Damien and the traitors all sat together smugly. Dawn, who was resting her head on Damien's shoulders was especially pleased.

"Look at that, Damien," She whispered into his ear. "He's down one." Damien nodded. "Yes. This sort of trainer, I know that type: he's a one trick Ponyta. He's as good as finished without that Volcarona."

Ash looked around desperately, for any form of validation. The poor child was on his own again.

In the crowd, a certain woman looked at him worriedly. She could feel the loneliness burning in her own heart as well.

"Sceptile..." He said weakly. Under the stadium's unified glare he felt weak and alone.

The Wood Gecko Pokémon gathered himself and proudly marched onto the field, and he stared at Damien in the crowd angrily. He growled and turned back to Golisopod. Now that he had seen that scum, his fighting spirit was invigorated.

"Did… _Did that animal just judge me…?"_ Damien fumed.

"Sceptile, use your Leaf Strike attack!" Ash decided. Sceptile growled and started his Leaf Blade attack in both hands along with X-Scissor and Aerial Ace.

"X-Scissor!" Guzma roared, unsure of what to do.

The entire stadium gasped at just how fast Sceptile was. Golisopod made its' first steps forwards and had already clashed with Sceptile. Both Pokemon struggled, but Golisopod seemed to have the advantage in brute power.

The two Pokémon struck each other and landed on the other side of the stadium. Sceptile landed on his knee as Golisopod collapsed to both his knees.

Ash's eyes were hollowed out still and his destructive nature was still present.

Suddenly, a white light enveloped Golisopod and the Hard Scale Pokémon retreated into his Pokeball.

"What? Why did you recall Golisopod?"

Guzma smirked. "I did no such thing," he said tauntingly.

" **GUZMA'S GOLISOPOD CALLS AN EMERGENCY EXIT! WHAT'S NEXT IN THE MENACE'S ARSENAL?"**

"See, kid, that was Golisopod's Ability: when his health goes beneath half, he'll inmediately retreat into his Pokeball."

He drew another Pokeball, and launched it onto the field. It snapped open, revealing another Pokemon.

Ash watched as Guzma sent out his next Pokémon, an incredibly fast and tiny Pokémon. In other words, something that would be a nightmare to land an attack on.

"Masquerain, crush him!" He cackled. Ash stared quietly, and Sceptile fired a series of Bullet Seeds at the Masquerade Pokémon.

The Bug type was still for a moment, before avoiding each seed at the last possible moment. Ash gritted his teeth at the discrete show of power.

"Kid, my Masquerain is the fastest there is. Nothing can even come close!"

In the stands, Professor Oak(s), Delia Ketchum, Molly Hale, Spencer Hale, Porfessor Sycamore, and Professor Kukui all watched the match with a great deal of interest.

Professor Oak had hammered on each time Don Satoshi got an attack in on Guzma.

"Yes! He's done it! Samson, that is the same boy who once stopped a battle between Lugia, a maniac with a battleship, and the three Legendary Birds of Kanto! Can you IMAGINE!" He screamed, annoying everyone around him.

"Professor Oak, might I remind you that your behaviour here will reflect poorly on Professor Kukui and all of the Alola Region? He brought you here as a guest of honour, after all." Delia lectured him. Professor Kukui laughed. "There's no harm in getting excited over seeing an old friend after so long. I can't blame you, Professor, but if this boy was so great, why did you lose contact with him?"

Delia's smile fell off of her face. Samuel Oak groaned and put his head into his hands.

"I'll answer that question," Snarled a newcomer. It was Max, and all of the others. The Professor frowned and looked downwards in shame as he realised what was happening.

Ash, regaining some sense of sanity, whistled at Sceptile. The wood gecko turned around in the heat of combat to state at Ash. "Sceptile, use Dragon Breath instead." He said calmly.

Sceptile grinned. At least he was coming back to his senses.

Sceptile unleashed a ray of green mist that narrowly hit Masquerain in the side. Masquerain, having no time to dodge, was hit by the attack.

Guzma grunted at the sight, but then yellow sparks emerged from Masquerain. Paralysis had taken full effect. The ball was in Ash's court.

"Aerial Ace!" Ash commanded. Now, he could hit Masquerain without that much hassle.

Sceptile vanished from sight and reappeared just before Masquerain, but did not strike.

Then again, but this time, it sent Masquerain spiralling into the wall.

"Masquerain is unable to battle, red trainer, send out your next Pokemon!"

Guzma was shocked: no one had ever done that before. No one had ever landed a super-effective attack on Masquerain before!

The Alolan trainer looked at the mechanical Pokeball before deciding not to use it yet.

"Golisopod, show them what you're made of!" He ordered. The Hard Scale Pokemon roared and charged at Sceptile.

Suddenly, Guzma broke into some kind of weird pose.

 _"What's he doing...?"_ Ash thought.

"NOW! Z MOVE: SAVAGE SPIN OUT!"

The traitors looked at each other, not knowing what the attack was.

"What did he say?" Iris whispered. "Beats me," May said. Damien kept quiet because he got bored and started drinking to keep himself entertained. He didn't want to get wild in the middle of the arena, so he made sure to shut his trap nice and good.

"I'll enlighten you all!" Clement said. "It's a Z-Move, a powerful type of attack from the Alola Region. Basically, you need a microtransductive transcommununications application which allows for syncronisation amongst trainer and Pokemon!"

"...What?" Serena said.

Clement just sighed. "No one will ever understand me..." He muttered.

"Just tell us what the move does, idiot!" Damien bellowed. So much for keeping quiet...

Clement shrugged. "Each Z-move alters from each type of Pokemon. This is the standard Bug-type Z-Move, Savage Spin-Out."

Ash's Aura Senses almost broke from exposure to the amount of energy Golisopod was emitting.

Golisopod was covered in a sparkling light and then it charged at Sceptile, knocking him over. Sceptile growled as Golisopod covered him in webbing and, span him around in the air like a ball and chain. Golisopod, with a roar, brought him down twice with his great power, knocking him down. Then finally, Golisopod brought the web closer to himself and split the web by slicing straight through it.

"Sceptile!" Ash called out to the steaming crater in the middle of the battlefield.

Much to the audience's shock, Sceptile struggled and got up to his feet with a cocky grin.

" _It takes more than that to beat me!"_

He smiled. Ash nodded at his partner.

Suddenly, a green aura came over Sceptile's body.

"OVERGROW!" Ash roared triumphantly.

"No way... I've never seen this before..." Kukui said in awe. "In all my years, I've never seen anyone stand up to Guzma's Z-Moves!" The others looked at him quizzically.

"You know him?" Zoey asked. Kukui nodded.

"Guzma and I go way back, but there's a story for another time. But really… Who is this boy? To withstand a Golisopod's super-effective Z-Move, I can't begin to understand the type of training he must have endured…"

Delia smiled with pride. "That's my son's prized Pokemon for you!"

Sceptile smirked, because with Overgrow in effect he could either use Synthesis to regenerate his health or, as Ash would probably suggest, given his sour mood, deal massive damage to Golisopod. The mud on the ground absorbed the green aura and flowers began to sprout. Blades of grass shot out of the dirt, and Sceptile readied himself for to attack.

"Sceptile, don't hold back. Rapid fire Bullet Seed Bomb!" He ordered.

"Bullet Seed Bomb?" Zoey asked, uncomfortably.

Anabel smiled. "Seems like the sort of thing he's come up with.

Sceptile roared and charged up his Seed Bombs and rapid fired them at Golisopod.

"Grrr... Golisopod, use X-Scissor!"

Golisopod wasn't nearly quick enough to intercept all of the seeds and quickly fell to Sceptile's power.

"GRRR, GUZMA! WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!" The Team Skull boss roared. Without Golisopod, he may as well have surrendered and it would mean the same to him. Frustratedly, he sent out his last Pokemon.

"C'MON OUT, YOU STRANGE POKEMON! TEACH THIS PUNK A LESSON IN DIGNITY!"

Out of Guzma's Pokeball came a purple, mechanised bug with a red cannon on its' back. It had red eyes and thin claws that screamed bloody murder.

Ash's left eye, covered by bangs, began to glow blue as he read the Aura of the mysterious insect. His own experiences could tell him that the Pokemon was Genesect. A Legendary Pokemon, none the less.

However, his eye also pointed out the dark Aura emanating from Genesect's body. A Shadow Legendary Pokemon.

"Sceptile, be careful. Don't mess around with that Pokemon, it's incredibly powerful." He snapped. Sceptile nodded.

"Alright, Genesect, let's see what you've got! Use Techno Blast on Sceptile!" Guzma roared, throwing his fist in the air.

"Dodge it and use Hidden Power!"

Sceptile rolled to the side and dodged the laser shot. Upon impact, the laser shot turned into a raging inferno that nearly knocked Sceptile straight out of his mind.

" _Damn it! That's strong..."_ They both thought.

Sceptile unleashed a little ball of light that turned into fire upon impact with Genesect, sending the robotic bug reeling back.

"GUNK SHOT!" Guzma cried triumphantly. Ash gritted his teeth.

He had to use his Aura power to keep Sceptile safe. " _Endure!"_

Unfortunately, Sceptile was sent reeling back by the blast of toxic rubbish.

" **Guzma and Don Satoshi are both on their last legs! Is this the end for the enigma? Or will it be Guzma's claim to shame? Let's see!"**

"Send out your final Pokemon, Mr. Satoshi!" The referee announced.

It was at this point that Ash realised how much fun could be had here…

"Charizard. I chose you!" He exclaimed. The stadium whispered in excitement as Ash sent out the Flame Pokemon.

In the Elite's Office:

Lance stared at Charizard with a great deal of respect. Cynthia seemed to have caught on as well.

"That Charizard, look at it, Cynthia. That is the power we can promise if you join me." He whispered into her ear. She glared at him, slightly annoyed at the Johto Champion.

"Sorry, but I don't understand. What's so special about this Charizard?" Steven inquired. Lance looked at him condescendingly and Cynthia tried to explain.

"When Dragon Pokemon, or even Dragon-like Pokemon reach a certain level of power, their scales begin to change colour. Look,"

She gestured to Don's Charizard, which still had orange legs, but its' snout, body, and wings were all turning red.

"My Charizard is as red as my hair, Cynthia." Lance said. "Again, the offer is still on the table." The Sinnoh Champion flushed and folded her arms.

"Steven, when a Charizard's scales turn red, it's a sign that it is beginning to approach its' maximum level."

Cynthia told him.

Steven smiled and crossed his legs.

"Oh, then my intuition was right. This will be a good fight."

" **Genesect v.s Charizard: let the battle begin!"**

Ash, just by looking at Genesect could tell that himself and Charizard had the upper hand, because of their stronger bond. It was clear, that wherever Guzma had found Genesect from, it was a recent capture and not a close ally, like Golisopod and Masquerain were.

"Genesect, use Extreme Speed!"

Genesect rushed forwards in a burst of speed, and slammed into Charizard's neck, knocking the Flame Pokemon over. Charizard growled and got back to his feet, only to get an uppercut from Genesect again.

" _It's not that fast, but it has one hell of a punch. It's staying very close to Charizard, so that he can't use his ranged attacks..."_

"Charizard, close-range attacks! Fire Fang!" He ordered. Genesect leaped away and used Ice Beam on Charizard's wings, and the ice melted instantly, causing Charizard to wince at the presence of water.

"Genesect, use Swords Dance!" Guzma growled. Ash glared at him, waiting for the inevitable attack.

" _Please be patient, Charizard… PLEASE be patient..."_ He crossed his fingers. Genesect roared and charged forwards with Extreme Speed. Ash could just about keep up with its' speed and gulped.

"YES!" He whispered.

Charizard let out a deep roar and bit down on Genesect with its' burning teeth. The cyborg Pokemon started to let out a mechanised wail, but Charizard wasn't going to let go.

"Get him away from you! Use a ranged attack!"

Charizard lifted Genesect up and threw him into the air with his fangs. Charizard was prepared to launch Overheat on Genesect, but Ash's Aura Voice told him not to.

" _Be patient… An attack that's equally powerful will be more effective here. We need another opening to attack!"_

"Fire Blast!" Ash ordered.

"Techno Blast!" Guzma snapped back.

An incinerating explosion ensued as the two unbelievable fire attacks collided. Smoke covered the stadium, and nothing was visible. Charizard then understood what Ash was saying.

Suddenly, like a hot knife through butter, Charizard was seen erupting from the tower of smoke, glowing red and leaving a trail of smoke behind. And on top of him, was Genesect.

" **UNBELIEVABLE FOLKS! CHARIZARD USED THE SMOKE AS A DISTRACTION AND FOLLOWS UP WITH A GARGANTUAN FLARE BLITZ!"**

Charizard spun around in the air, still glowing red, and then slammed it into the ground, leaving a small crater.

Charizard flew away from Genesect and a recoil caused him to roar in pain.

" **Genesect is unable to battle! Guzma is out of usable Pokemon, therefore Charizard is the winner and Don is the victor!"**

The stadium was silent, before turning into slight applause. Then, an almighty wave of cheers erupted from the stadium. Don Satoshi turned the match around so quickly and so skilfully that they were all highly impressed with him.

All of the anger was gone as he saw Charizard grinning at their victory. He flexed his huge arms, smirking at how strong he had become.

"Well done, Charizard. Return." He said calmly. He looked at Genesect, hoping to use his Aura to help it, but then his eyes widened as he looked at who was helping him.

Silver Sakaki, growling at Guzma, led him out of the stadium, returning Genesect to its' Pokeball. Ash quietly stared at Silver's retreating form and thought to give chase, but with all the League Officials watching him, he decided not to.

"Damien… He won again." Dawn said. Her voice was terrifyingly cold. Damien glared at the retreating figure of Don Satoshi.

"Yes. He did." Damien said angrily.

There was absolutely zero data in any database about anyone called Don Satoshi. He came in as a recommendation from Paul, meaning he didn't need (or have) a Trainer's License. How was it that someone this powerful could emerge without public realisation?

That last attack, however, reminded him of someone. And he knew just the person.

Serena stared at him, remembering her nightmare with him in it. May was beginning to hate him as well, because of the pain he had caused Dawn. This guy was a bigger problem than they had initially thought. As they all got up to leave, Serena sneaked away to find Don Satoshi and get to the bottom of this mystery.

Ash walked into the locker room and looked at the three Pokeballs he had used. Sceptile, Volcarona, and Charizard all needed to be healed, especially Sceptile, who had taken that Gunk Shot attack head-on. A gentle knock on the door alerted him to the presence of other people.

He opened the door. It was Annabel, leaning on the door frame.

"Well done in your match, Ash!" She cheered. Ash smiled faintly. Deep down, he knew he could've done better. He really let Volcarona down by getting angry with her.

"Thanks, Annabel..." He smiled faintly. Sensing his sadness, she wrapped her arms around him and whispered into his ear, "I've got something that might cheer you up!" She said.

Ash's eyes widened.

"No, Ash, not that..." She giggled. "Someone is here to see you!"

After her was an aged woman in a blue skirt, a yellow blouse and a pink cardigan. She had amber eyes, like him, and her hair was fixed in an auburn ponytail, like a sunset orange colour.

Ash's eyes widened as he looked at her. Annabel, knowing that it was best for them, left the room.

Without even a single word between them, Delia sat on the bench where Darkrai once was, cradling Ash in her arms.

" _One thing's for certain: I'd make the best girlfriend in the world."_ Annabel said confidently.

There were no need for tears, for it was a happy reunion.

Suddenly, the grill around the air vent fell and a large 'clang' was heard. There was a lot of grunting and struggling as the chubby mouse tried to fit through the opening. Finally, Pikachu fell out of the ventilation shaft, gasping and panting for air. Ash, completely speechless, just stared at his partner, who was clearly suffering from 'too much ketchup/hot sauce syndrome'.

"Pikachu. It's very nice to see you again. Have you two been taking good care of each other?" Delia said pleasantly.

"Chaa-aaah!" Pikachu chirruped happily, with a huge smile on his face. He leaped into Ash's lap and sat on their legs.

Delia looked into her son's eyes and saw what he had become. His eyes reflected a scarred individual and a lot of malice.

"Ash," She whispered. "Why are your eyes so dark and scary?" She whispered. "What happened to you?"

"I… I kept fighting, mom." He said, trying to fight off his tears. "I kept going, and I kept getting stronger. I'm sorry I-"

His mother hugged him tightly again, and Ash stopped talking. "Ashura Ketchum, you do not need to apologise to me for ANYTHING! What happened was absolutely NOT your fault, and if you try and argue with me, I will argue back with you till the end of time. Now, do you understand me, young man?"

Ash froze. Then he smiled.

It was getting better.


	10. Jubilant Tears

**Seeking Freedom**

 **Chapter 10: Jubilant Tears**

 **A/N: Hey guys, welcome back to Seeking Freedom! It's been a while and I'm glad to be back.**

 **I read the reviews for Chapter 9, and THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ALL THE POSITIVE REVIEWS! It was so encouraging to read them, I can't thank you all enough!**

 **Anyway, onto the Chapter!**

 **A/N: This one is mostly a set up to the bulk of Chapter 11.**

* * *

Kalos was a big place, and the Pokemon League had a little spending money in their pockets. There was a big property near the stadium where their Master's Tournament was taking place, so why not make a little investment?

Giovanni sipped away at a cup of coffee at his desk, in his home away from home. He wore a black blazer and a white shirt with a crimson tie. It wasn't a tight fit, but it helped illustrate the sheer bulk he had. Looker didn't know what else he was wearing, but envied the lavish material. His Persian was lying under the desk, waiting to strike if anything went wrong. Looker could just about hear the gentle breathing of the cat.

"Well, Officer Looker," He spoke. Looker leaned in close on every word. His investigation was being evaluated.

"I will try and offer as much help as possible. Team Rocket can't keep doing this, it's inexcusable."

Looker smiled. He was about to speak when Giovanni rose and faced the window on the back wall.

"This affront to justice cannot possibly go unanswered." He was didactic in tone.

Looker nodded and thanked Giovanni. The President of the Pokemon League shook his head and said,

"Thank you, International Police, for keeping our streets clean. The PLA will do whatever it takes to handle the situation. No Team Rocket scum will steal Pokemon from our trainers."

Suddenly there was a large bang. At once the door slammed open with such incredible force one would think a Pokemon had done it. Looker's head turned towards the door almost instinctively, and he regretted doing so when he saw a man being thrown in his direction.

Looker's eyes widened and his hand instinctively reached for his Luxray's Pokeball. Giovanni raised his finger to halt him from doing so. Looker hesitantly complied with Giovanni.

The man with white hair carried a very masculine aura about him, one which looked like it was now on the verge of destruction. He was flung into one of the chairs, and Looker decided to get a good look at the one responsible.

The boy. He boasted such character and such great force emanated from his being. It chilled the air around him and made Looker fear for his life. He knew nothing could happen, this was a place of business, but this boy's presence seemed almost unearthly. He was a force beyond all reasoning. He had long red hair and bore black, well-fitting jacket with a red rim. His eyes, however, were burning with anger and filled with a great determination as well as courage.

It was then that Looker noticed the red 'R' emblazoned on the breast of his jacket. His eyes widened with surprise.

"Silver," Giovanni said curtly. He did not look away from the window once, which seemed to further aggravate the red-headed child. Looker did not know whether he did this from fear of the child or lack thereof.

"What have I told you about interrupting me whilst I work?" He spoke calmly, yet with a hint of indignation.

The boy was with Team Rocket, the very crooks who Looker had been discussing with Giovanni only moments ago!

"You BASTARD!" 'Silver' snapped at Giovanni. Giovanni moved his feet away from the window and faced Silver. He looked him dead in the eye.

"WHERE IS HE?" Silver demanded.

Giovanni dismissed his claim and returned to peering out of the window.

"… Do you mean… No, that's not important right to you in the slightest. He's no concern of yours, son." He looked over his shoulder and greeted the head of Team Skull.

"Guzma, good to see you."

Looker felt a pang in his stomach when he started to feel… Left out.

Guzma had the eyes of a crook and Silver appeared to be a member of Team Rocket.

The white haired man groaned and responded, "Hey, boss. It's ya boi… Did anyone get the number of that… Redhead?" He slurred. His head was spinning about like a bobble head. He was just dizzy, thankfully not concussed.

Giovanni opened the drawers on his desk to throw an Ice Stone at Guzma, who caught it and held it against his head to relieve the pain. His Persian made itself known and curled into a a precocious little ball of fur on the table.

The Pokemon League was a hive of criminals.

The crazy theories were right. Suddenly Looker understood the motives of Don Satoshi, that wretched vigilante who acted without mercy or law.

Looker sought a way to escape from the predicament he was in. He quickly ran out of the door, and when Persian made to stop him with Fury Swipes, Looker thought he was finished. However, to his great surprise, Silver walked in front of him and kicked the feline Pokemon, knocking it across the room, and intentionally let a member of the International Police escape free with their secret.

Looker didn't waste a second in casting a smoke bomb and fleeing the building. Before he left, he looked at the bruise on Persian left by Silver's tremendous kick.

Looker was a secret agent, and since he how to get into the building, he also knew how to get out. Searching for him would be futile, Giovanni thought sadly.

Silver demanded his attention again, much to his displeasure.

"Guzma, tell the Boss what you told me a moment ago: tell me about the first human ever captured by our Shadow Trainer machine." Silver snapped. Giovanni looked at Guzma with an arched eyebrow.

Guzma shrugged and responded, "The boy wanted to know about what credentials I had to be working with the League. I told him that Team Skull, my posse, supply you guys with Z-Crystals from Alola, especially the freezing powers of Icium-Z. He already knew about The Cage from somewhere else, I dunno where."

Giovanni nodded. He turned to explain the harsh reality of the situation to his son.

"I see. Guzma, you will not be punished. My son is the only one who needs a lesson."

"Don't… Don't you call me that." Silver growled aggressively.

Giovanni rationally explained himself, but this was only to emasculate Silver further. He could barely stop his lips from curling at the corners.

"Silver, a Pokemon Master is only born once every thousand years. It only makes sense to preserve their bodies in whatever way we can. Red Ketchum came to fight me one last time." Giovanni tilted his head, gesturing Silver to sit. Silver was too livid, however and rejected the offer.

Explaining himself was merely a formality. If Silver chose to leave now, he would be beaten senseless later for defying due conduct with Giovanni. If he stayed, he could be emotionally emasculated.

Giovanni slowly got more angry at his son's inability to listen or behave.

"He stormed in through the front door of my headquarters, and we almost filled him with attacks from behind. Why did he do something so stupid, Silver? I'll tell you. His ungodly attachment to you. To this day his wife probably cries from his stupidity. His son is missing and fatherless. Not you, I mean: that brat Damien knocked off, of course."

Perhaps Giovanni had gone too far, Guzma thought. Silver's eyes widened. He gritted his teeth. His muscles tightened and veins became visible on his arms and his body flushed red. He went from a silent force of power, to looking like an angry Tauros. He had been insulted and discarded again and his body rose to the insult. His body became the manifestation of human wrath. His breathing was deep. Guzma began to sweat with fear. Never in his life had he seen anyone like this before. Not even that witch from the Aether Foundation was like this.

However, the glare Giovanni gave his son dwarfed the anger coming from Silver. Whilst Silver radiated an insurmountable anger, Giovanni batted it away as though it were nothing.

The hatred they bore each other went far past anything the Alolan gangster had ever seen before. Not even the most vicious, most territorial Pokemon in the world could stare at each other the same way Silver and Giovanni were. The entire room was flooded by the essence of years of hatred and abuse between the two. They were two demons.

"Father… You are a despicable man," Silver hissed. "You made me your slave…" Silver whispered.

"FOR WHAT? SO YOU COULD… WHAT, DID YOU THINK…? I'LL TELL YOU! I'LL TELL YOU WHAT, YOU SON OF A HOUNDOOM, I'LL TELL YOU WHAT!"

Giovanni had enough of his bastard son at this point. Listening him yammer on about this, and that. He thought about wiping his memories with a Psychic Pokemon, but that could impact his skills as a Trainer. No, he would just have to school Silver the old-fashioned way.

"...Do you think anger is the answer to your problems, boy? In the face of a man, who is far greater than you, in his own place of business? Well? DO YOU? BECAUSE I WILL TELL YOU THIS, WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT: FORGET ABOUT YOUR FAMILY! THEY ARE MEANINGLESS TO YOU, YOU ARE MY SON, MY SERVANT, AND NOTHING MORE! I DEMAND THAT YOU RESPECT MY AUTHORITY AND MY JUDGEMENT! LOOK AT YOU, RULED BY YOUR PATHETIC EMOTIONS! YOU'RE JUST ANOTHER PAWN TO ME, KID! YOUR SKILLS ARE THE ONLY REASON I PUT UP WITH THIS NONSENSE, AND THE ONLY REASON I KNEW YOU WOULD BE WORTH TAKING IN!"

Silver and Giovanni stared at each other for a moment. The hatred had switched from Silver, as he became weak and frightened. Now Giovanni radiated the unearthly fury.

Silver barked at him once more, but his words were beneath Giovanni's considering. Too childish and immature.

"YOU ARE NOTHING, BOY! YOUR FATHER COULDN'T SAVE YOU FROM ME! YOU'RE ONLY HALF THE MAN HE WAS, WHAT CHANCE DO YOU HAVE AGAINST ME?"

Giovanni stopped to regain his breath.

It was time for the finishing blow.

"They forgot about you." He spoke quietly. He emphasised his words and Silver's heart plunged. "They adopted another son. He became the pride of her life. Get over it, weakling. It's pathetic, watching you live like they mean anything to you. I spent thirteen years listening to you cry.. Grow up and start acting like the son of a true businessman. Forgo those childish emotions. As your father, I ask this of you."

He spoke coldly, mercilessly, in the way that would impact Silver the most. He didn't bother with the angry register and spoke coolly.

"Now leave. Do not let me see you again. Today you put my entire life work into jeopardy, lord knows where that officer has gone to. Why do you pull this crap when the stakes are so high? So much is riding on our winning this tournament…"

Giovanni shook his head.

"Leave your uniform here and change into something else. Come back once you become worthy of wearing it. I always have Damien and Tobias to replace you as my son. That position is always replaceable."

That was it. Silver glared on last time. It was weak, meaningless, futile. And then he ran, with glistening tears running down his face. He was defeated. Giovanni knew that after this, Silver would be resigned to his fate as a Team Rocket stooge.

As he ran, Silver collided with Ardos, who wasn't really phased by the impact. He gently readjusted his sunglasses and walked past Silver. Ardos had become familiar with the play in the little time he had been working under Giovanni's rule: Silver's destructive nature, his strength which came from his heart, never really got along with the cold, more tactical, head of Giovanni. Silver's inability to be a perfect slave was of great aggravation to the Rocket Boss.

Ardos shook his head. He walked into the huge office at the end of the hall, with the hardwood door and the red carpet.

He rapped his knuckles against the office door, and walked inside. Guzma gave him a toothy grin and had been switched from an Ice Stone to a NeverMelt Ice.

Giovanni was in his chair, tending to his Persian. The cat hissed at Ardos when he walked in, but the blue-haired enigma ignored it.

"Giovanni, sir, I have news."

Giovanni looked at his most loyal servant with a bitter expression.

"Can it wait?" He snapped. Ardos shook his head and started to smile.

"The good news," Ardos reached into his trouser pockets and retrieved two shining Pokeballs.

Giovanni looked over the desk and eyed them for a moment with a child-like curiosity. One was made of a very rich gold and had traces of ruby around it. In the light it glowed in many different colours.

The other Pokeball captured the essence of the depths of the ocean. It was a sleek silver colour, and deep blue rim. In the light it was resplendent.

His extremities filled with a terrifying warmth. His heart moved the same way the heart does when good news reaches it, except in his case it was the purest, deepest evil. The gleam of triumph appeared in his eyes. He tried to suppress his sheer satisfaction from Ardos.

Giovanni leaned back in his chair and smirked.

"What have you brought me, Commander Ardos?" He feigned ignorance to hear the story of their acquisition from the ex-Cipher commander.

"Tobias and I, we used a pair of binoculars to detect the presence of Ho-Oh in the sky. Analysis shows that it was resting in one place for more than three days. I used his Latios to battle it and in twenty minutes we were able to capture it."

Giovanni nodded with a taciturn contentment. "And what of Lugia?"

"Our Psychic Pokemon sensed Lugia's presence as soon as we captured Ho-Oh. We sent Ho-Oh out in a controlled environment and commanded it to release a signal. Shortly after, Lugia appeared and I subdued it with my Kingdra." He responded succinctly and immediately. This pleased Giovanni.

"Where are they now?"

"Ho-Oh is currently underground in the on-site lab and we transported Lugia to the Plasma Frigate. I didn't want them to be anywhere near each other."

Giovanni looked up and pursed his lips. No, he thought. There were no flaws in the plan thus far.

"I should have sent you to do this years ago," He said smugly.

No Pokemon were more prominent in legend than the two birds of the Johto Region. Jessie and James had first-handedly seen the power Lugia possessed. It was phenomenal!

Ho-Oh had such a miraculous power and those blessed to see it were given eternal happiness. It was also known that Ho-Oh's Sacred Fire could eliminate the darkness in one's heart, so to have that power under his control and not used against his legion of Shadow Pokemon, made him feel very safe indeed.

"Ho-Oh and Lugia… Both in my possession. Why, I feel like a God now! How goes the... _purification_?"

Again he didn't hesitate to reply.

"The researchers have stated that it will take a very long time to convert either of them. For Shadow Lugia, they have to dig up Cipher's old schematics from the Orre Region, most of which were destroyed or confiscated, and improve on that design. We've sent Archie out to do that job for us."

Giovanni drummed his fingers against the desk.

"However, once we finish with Lugia, which should take us around a month, we can simply alter the genetic template for Lugia and transplant into Ho-Oh."

"… How long?" Giovanni asked. No, he didn't ask. He demanded. Did he even speak? Did he open his mouth? Ardos and Guzma both knew what he was going to say, but the force of his 'demand', if one could even call it that, made itself known immediately.

"..."

"At least a month, sir." He spoke softly. Giovanni swivelled around in his seat, much to Persian's discomfort. He looked out of the window again, optimistically searching for Interpol Officer Looker.

"Keep Ho-Oh and Lugia in captivity, make sure that no one knows that we have them in our possession. Not even within our own organisation. That is my demand. Have Ein oversee the project."

Ardos nodded. "Understood, sir." He turned around and left. "Hold up," Guzma muttered. The Alolan got up and left with him.

"Oh, and Ardos?"

"Yes sir?"

"How many Pokemon do you have with you right now?" The Boss asked.

Ardos suddenly looked sad. Then he turned furious and looked at the Boss.

"Three."

Giovanni shook his head. "That simply won't do. Please," He gestured for him whilst also pressing keys on his laptops. In an instant a plethora of Pokemon dropped from above.

Ardos shyly approached the desk and stood there. Giovanni turned his laptop around and gestured for him to scroll through.

"Take whichever Pokemon you like. About four years ago, Galactic Boss Cyrus' plan to capture Dialga and Palkia failed and his Pokemon were returned to us after he went missing. Please, do take which ever ones you like and analyse them on my PC." He asked.

Ardos, although uneasy, checked each Pokeball. He looked at the three in his pocket, sadly.

Cipher was a terrific Empire across the world. Although the Pokemon League was stronger, Cipher and their admins were far smarter in comparison to them. They were geniuses, rich geniuses, funded by the wealth of Mr. Verich, and as the heirs of the Empire were given all the comforts they could ever want. Ardos had enrolled in Pokemon Technical, with his brother and close friend, Wes, and grew up to serve under their father. Wes, the loose cannon he was, left school earlier and joined Team Snagem. The brothers begged their father to acquire Team Snagem in hope of seeing their friend again. Greevil was reluctant. This was Ardos' first mistake.

During his last year of school, Ardos was shocked to hear that the Snag Machine, the tool they used for robbing trainers of their Pokemon, was stolen by none other than Wes. He felt betrayed when Wes was on Television, defeating the head of Cipher in Orre at the time, Evice and snagging their ultimate Shadow Pokemon.

Ardos was so furious, and joined his father in Cipher as his bodyguard. He resigned his life to Cipher and inevitably, to find Wes and crush him like the Weedle he was.

Five years later Ardos was shocked to hear his father's words. A boy, no older than ten years of age was in front of him. In his own fortress, Citadark Isle, his father admitted defeat.

"From this point on..." He said.

"Cipher is finished."

He refused Ardos' suggestion of destroying the base and killing everyone associated with Cipher except for them, and starting anew elsewhere. Unfortunately, the scum Ardos called his brother, Eldes, convinced Greevil into surrendering himself.

Ardos fled. His Swellow, Electabuzz, and prized Snorlax had been Snagged by this boy, his remaining Pokemon critically injured. Unlike Greevil and Eldes he had fled capture- if the police found him he would definitely be destroyed.

He united the remaining Cipher Peons and whatever was left of the Shadow Pokemon schematics and desperately searched for a way to begin his reign as Supreme Master of Cipher. That was how he met Giovanni.

Ardos decided to take Cyrus' old Gyarados, Honchkrow, and Houndoom to replace his old Shadow Pokemon.

One thing Giovanni never doubted was Silver's desire to prove himself and he was prepared to give him the tools with which to do so. Ever since Giovanni kidnapped him during his youth, Silver had been made to do despicable things. Silver grew up around various Team Rocket Bases, occasionally the Magma and Galactic ones. Giovanni never let him near Team Aqua, they were too dangerous, and at the time he hadn't acquired Plasma and Flare. He had to wait until Ghetsis was out of the picture to start operating in Unova.

Everyone treated Silver coldly and he hadn't a single friend. He never got to go to school with other children, and was home-schooled by Team Rocket scientists, the drop outs who could never make it as Pokemon Professors. His favourites were Cyrus, Saturn and Charon of Team Galactic. After Silver turned ten, Cyrus, the head of Team Galactic, gave him his first assignment. Everyone said he wasn't ready. Everyone said it would be impossible. Cyrus just shook his head and said, "The only impossible thing would be them stopping him."

Pokemon Master Red Taijiri's genes ran strong in Silver. From a young age he was gifted with Pokemon. One of first negative encounters with his father came when he was only seven years old and he freed a Shiny Ralts into the wild. The poor thing was essentially a gene pool with which other trainers could breed their Pokemon in the hopes of getting a Shiny Ralts of their own. Successful ones were pilfered from the trainers and sold to the highest bidder. Ralts herself was pawned off to rich trainers for entire weeks so they could do what they wanted to her.

Silver located her cage and broke the hatches on it and she instantly teleported away, without even saying 'Thank you'. His father had been furious with him, and from that day Silver learned that Pokemon were only tools. That was how he treated his team. However, they refused to abandon Silver despite the cruel way he treated them.

The assignment was simple: capture as many Pokemon as he could from Elm's lab. It was a couple of months prior to Ash getting his first Pokemon, since Giovanni was adamant about letting Silver realise his talent as a trainer and use that power against the Rockets.

In a single night Silver walked into New Bark Town and burned down two houses as though they were nothing. The police were distracted with ensuring that everyone was safe that it left the Pokemon Lab wide open. Silver broke in through the windows and captured every single Pokemon in the lab. One he took a liking to was a friendly-looking Totodile who was ditzy and polite to him even when he had captured all of his buddies. He wasn't done, however: using his army of Pokemon he ran to Violet City and Cherrygrove City, where he went on to use the vast numbers of Pokemon at his disposal to completely overwhelm all the trainers. He captured over a hundred Pokemon in a single night. Even Falkner was devastated by the loss of so many precious Pokemon.

Giovanni was so impressed that he let Silver keep a Pokemon of his choice. He chose to keep the goofy Totodile with him and it ended up being his accomplice in many crimes. In just two months, Giovanni was awed to see it had become a powerful Feraligatr.

Many Team Rocket operations had failed in the past, but it was going to be okay now. If Silver had been a menace before, what was he with Pokemon? Virtually unstoppable. The money that was lost by the bumbling grunts was easily made up for by Silver's incredible success.

Eventually, Giovanni decided to assign Silver some of his own, less powerful Pokemon. Silver turned them into phenomenal creatures within five years of training.

Even the most valuable soldier in his private army, Sabrina Natsume, was perhaps weaker than Silver.

Sabrina was the strongest Psychic in the world, by far. It took twenty PhD's and a team of engineers to figure out how to keep her powers in check. There was a brief period in which she was free of their control, but that had been easily settled.

Oddly enough, she had an encounter with Ash Ketchum as well, which resulted in her dominion being broken.

Giovanni was most displeased by this. In years to come, he himself met Ash Ketchum, foiler of so many of his plans. How that clueless boy did it was a mystery, but he knew that something needed to be done about him...

Silver went back to his hotel room, far away from the huge office building. It was the second biggest hotel in Kalos, just about smaller than the Kalos Celestios, or as it was known locally, the Regnum hotel. It was called the Old Castle Hotel.

He only used his room or storing clothes and belongings. He spent most of his time training or doing missions for Giovanni. He kicked the door open and threw himself on to the bed and cried for a moment.

He emptied the closet looking for a change of clothes, and pulled his suitcase out from under his bed to retrieve his laptop. He downloaded the CCTV footage from the HQ and printed a picture of Looker's face. He perfectly understood what Looker smelled like, in his anger it did not slip him by. His body had a veteran look to it, his Pokemon were sure to recognise him instantly.

Silver was wearing his hair underneath a yellow Pokemon League Expo hat. He wore a yellow waistcoat, and a black under shirt. The same look that his mortal enemy, Ash Ketchum, donned for his first two years as a trainer, except in yellow.

Ash got to live with Delia Ketchum. Silver's mother. Two years after Silver went missing, they went out and adopted another kid. Why did he deserve to live like that, and get rewards and money, when the most Silver ever got was dinner?

He understood Giovanni's instruction completely and relayed it to his regiment: Seek and Destroy that pest, Looker, and be permitted to wear the Rocket uniform once more.

Silver always acted alone. Most two-man jobs, his Pokemon could handle with ease.

First he used his high-end wristwatch to analyse his Pokemon. The results were very pleasing indeed. The levels of his Pokemon were so high that even the Champions would struggle to keep up with them.

Feraligatr, Crobat, Gengar, Weavile, Magnezone, and his new team-mate, Alakazam. It was a new capture and wasn't as good as the others. It would do, but needed some extra training.

He showed them the photo, and he described the scent. Alakazam understood it perfectly. He closed his eyes and telepathically messaged the others what the smell was.

"NOW GO!" He barked at them. Easily his Pokemon would turn the city upside down. Silver lay in his bed and stared at the ceiling, waiting for them to bring Looker's head back to their master.

He was seeking freedom from this life.

* * *

Ash returned to the small hotel that Delia was staying at. He made sure she got there safely, he didn't want anything bad to happen to her, not in a million years.

As they arrived in the lobby, Ash ushered her up the stairs.

"Well, good night Ash. I'll be seeing you." Neither of them really wanted their reunion to end, but Delia understood that Ash had to get his rest if he were to compete in the Tournament. Sure, the First Round was over and it was now the weekend, but Ash wasn't the sort who would take things so easily. Tomorrow was a valuable training opportunity.

"Good night… mom." He smiled faintly. After he turned away and she walked up the stairs, he almost cried in sheer frustration: he had kept many secrets from her.

Don Satoshi left Delia without revealing anything about what he had done for the past three years. She knew he had been attacked many times in those hard days, and had fought many a battle, but she was unaware of the intensity at which he fought. He didn't mention just how many people he had to kill, nor how many people were on the lookout for him. All the blacklists, all the lives he had ruined beyond repair…

Ash wanted Freedom. He wanted to be Free from all of this, but he couldn't live in a world where using Pokemon for personal gain was the norm. It was unfair.

It had been a dark night, so no one could follow either of them. She would be safe. Now it was time to check in on his team. Ash went back to the forest.

"Hey, guys." He said coolly. They all looked at him and cheered for Ash. He hugged them all, and sent out his Volcarona, Sceptile and Charizard. Staraptor laid out a comfy bed of leaves for them and the weakened battlers rested in the bed.

Volcarona was still dizzy from her battle with Golisopod. She was completely infatuated with the Bug Pokemon, that was for sure, Pikachu thought.

"You guys rest up, okay? We'll get you some stuff to eat." All three of them chimed with satisfaction at seeing the boss in a happy state. Ash sent out Slylveon, Pidgeot, Pidgeot, Lucario, and Noivern. Staraptor descended and looked at the situation with some uncomfortable uncertainty. But now was the time for dinner, so who cared? The plan was that they would eat, then Ash would go to the city and face off against Clemont. He wasn't sure which Pokemon to use. Ash also took the time to introduce Squishy and Z2 to the team. Mew and Latias giggled at the sight of their favourite Legendary. Apparently, Zygarde was everyone's favourite in the Hall of Origin.

Staraptor was discomforted for some reason, but hid his discomfort with ease. Staraptor had seen someone in the forest earlier. Only for brief moment, but then they had vanished. He assumed it was a small Pokemon and his eyes were playing tricks on him.

Pupitar smirked and dragged a huge sack of raw Pokemon food out from under a bush with his teeth. Ash's eyes widened at the sight of it. Staraptor glared at him unhappily. Ash noted that dragging the bag with ease, without having any appendages, which was evidential of just how much Pupitar had been training. He was proud.

"Where… Where did you get all that?" Ash asked, pointing at the bag. "You guys could eat all of that, its' filled with all those special nutrients for professional battlers. Hell, Brock even did a paper on this stuff three years ago to get his diploma." He said in awe. Pupitar smirked and looked at Staraptor, who flushed.

" _ **I stole it."**_ He said, adamantly. " _ **Feraligatr wouldn't stop going on about how hungry he was, so I went into down and brought this back."**_

Ash stared at Staraptor for a moment, then burst into laughter. "Of course you did… What, someone was just about to feed their Pokemon and you swooped down to steal their food?"

Staraptor cooed and shrugged with his eyes closed

" _ **But Ash,**_ " Sceptile said. Him, Charizard, and Pikachu were the only ones who were really allowed to call him that. When they said it Ash's eyes didn't flash with hatred.

" _ **Won't those Pokemon starve?"**_ Sceptile asked. Staraptor shook his head.

" _ **I**_ _ **just broke into a warehouse and took this from another thief."**_ Staraptor stated. Ash nodded. "Stealing from a thief is fair game. And besides," He added hatefully.

"Feraligatr, you complained that you were starving but did you help Staraptor in getting the food?"

Feraligatr nodded vigorously. Staraptor too.

" _ **Mew**_ **,** _ **Feraligatr, and I went."**_ Staraptor explained.

Ash smiled. "Did the guy put up a fight?" The boys all shook their heads.

"I _ **used Transform and pretended to be a huge Salamence.**_ _ **I**_ _ **just stormed in and scared him off."**_

"He didn't actually have to fight? Lucky for him, huh?" They all shared a laugh and roasted berries over the fire to go with the food they had prepared.

Ash was impressed with what they had done with the large clearing. The treetops were covered in huge boughs, which he assumed Feraligatr had put there. The stability of the structure was surprisingly reliable, supplying them with escape routes, and it provided them with shelter from the rain. The Legendary Pokemon could easily escape if something bad were to happen.

The lower branches were very thick and after moving some vines around, courtesy of Pikachu, were fit for use as beds for Sylveon, Pikachu, Noivern, Pidgeot, and Staraptor.

Sceptile's bed was on top of the tree they slept on, in his own little hollow. They had a small make-shift ladder for him to climb up there with. If it rained during the night, he would gladly soak up all the water. If it snowed, he could always come back down and sleep on one of the branches.

There was a deep fire pit to prevent risk and there was a wooden fencing around the river bank. There were nice seats around the fire, made from logs and stumps that Flygon had found.

Two huge holes had been dug out and filled with hay and leaves. Charizard and Volcarona had two deeper beds in case something happened and they burned the forest down in their sleep.

Lucario and Pupitar had their own beds on the ground to. A special bed, made out of an exotic leaf, was left there for Ash's sake, because they didn't know when he would return.

Pupitar dug a cave underneath the river, so that Latias could hide from any kind of thermal sensor. Mew made a cute nest in the leaves and was a master at doing so. Zygarde already found his spot, clinging to a tree.

"You know, you guys did a really good job with this place," He said whilst eating a plate full of toasted bread which Staraptor had considerately brought from the warehouse he raided.

"I wonder what else you could do?" He thought.

Sceptile, with great difficulty, stood up, and pointed at the openings in the trees where Ash had entered from. He squinted his eyes for a moment and they began to glow green. From where he pointed, trees sprang out of the ground and created an entrance way for the others. Ash watched him warily.

"Sceptile? You okay, buddy?" The grass lizard smiled, whilst panting. He took a seat and tried to catch his breath after using a powerful Frenzy Plant.

Sceptile and Volcarona were given larger portions in smaller pieces than the others, and Charizard, as usual consumed the most food. He burped flames and they all laughed at him.

They dined on their nice food and drank clean water, which had been purified from the river by distillation.

Suddenly Lucario shuddered and they looked at him strangely. Then, Ash's eyes widened for a moment. Just as suddenly as it had happened, he seemed to change again. Now he put his game face.

"You can come out now." He said chillingly.

They all stared into the dark distance. Suddenly, they heard the crunching of leaves. Ash's eyes narrowed when Clemont appeared in front of him looking ashamed. His clothes were torn and burned in places. His glasses were smashed and barely on his face. He limped towards the fire which Ash was sitting at.

"Ash I..."

Ash shot up instantly and grabbed him by the throat. Then, in a show of strength, he lifted him up.

"A-AAH!" He coughed.

"What are you doing here? How did you find me here?" Ash demanded.

"P-please… Put me down." He cried.

Ash shook him around a little bit before flinging him to the ground. "Explain! Now!" Clemont immediately carried out his orders.

"A-Ash, listen to me… I want to apologise, for everything that's happened, but, there's something else that I need to talk to you about! It's about… It's about Greninja!" Ash paused for a moment and stared at Clemont.

"What happened to him?" He snapped. He hadn't seen Greninja since after his battle with Sawyer in the Kalos League, in this very spot three years ago. Not since the incident with Alain…

He searched Kalos over the past three years but nothing came up. Then it hit him and he paled as he put two and two together.

Clemont's explanation was rushed but Ash hung onto every word.

"I wanted to visit the guy who battled you, Guzma, but there was this red haired kid with him from Team Rocket. I went to ask him if I could talk to Guzma for a moment, but I heard them talking about how Ash Ketchum must be destroyed,"

Ash glared at him.

"W-well, they said so many things about what happened three years ago… I heard that it was all a set-up, right from the beginning! The incident at Oak's Lab was planned just to deface you so that the red-head could get back at you for something."

Ash took a minute to process this. His face paled and he went quiet.

"A set up..." He whispered.

"Then suddenly Greninja dropped down from the ceiling and attacked me! I… I had no clue what to do. I tried to send out my Pokemon but then the other two noticed me and the redhead sent out his Crobat and used it to tie me up. I told him to stop because I was an Elite Four, but he just laughed at me and said it was time for me to die."

Clemont was crying at this point. He was spluttering over his words and he was wailing. His throat kept catching.

"I managed…. To reason with him. I've never begged like that in my life, Ash. It was dark and I was so scared… His Magnezone used Shock Wave on me and my clothes burned up."

Suddenly Ash spoke. It was at this point Clemont realised he was crying. His voice was weak and wavering.

"Why did he let you go?" Ash asked without comfort.

"It was hell! He… Poisoned me with his Crobat's Toxic attack!"

Suddenly Ash's Pokemon gasped. The toxins of a Crobat were lethal to humans. If someone were bitten they would be dead within hours. Charizard, wanting to get a closer look at the traitor's face, spat on the fire to make it roar even louder and burn brighter.

Clemonts' face was blue and he visibly had little strength in him.

"That doesn't answer my question." Ash said without comfort. They were astonished.

She was astonished. Was this… Really Ash?

"I gave him my Pokemon," Clemont said. Ash fell silent.

"You did what?" He snapped.

"All of them… Diggersby, Magnezone, Heliolisk, Jolteon, Chesnaught, the Alakazam I was going to trade back to Bonnie."

Ash's anger got the best of him.

"YOU LET YOUR POKEMON DIE IN YOUR PLACE?" He screamed.

"Die…?"

"HOW COULD YOU DO THAT?" He snapped. He growled and kicked Clemont in the side. He called out in pain and rolled over.

"Do you know what they do to Pokemon in there? They take them into their custody and turn them into Shadow Pokemon. Fighting Machines that can't be reasoned with. Your Pokemon… They are probably being experimented on as we speak!"

"What, seriously? Man, that's messed up!"

Clemont gasped and started to cry. "How could I let this happen? Oh no..."

Ash growled and rummaged through his bag. He pulled out a bunch of Pecha Berries and threw them at Clemont, who moaned and swallowed them, relishing every bite of the refreshing berries.

Ash approached him and Clemont screamed when Ash sprayed him with a chilling Full Heal.

"After I got back from the Stadium," He continued, having calmed down.

"I went to the only people I could trust. First off, I went to Korrina, the Shalour City Gym Leader and then we tried to find you. She used her Lucario's Aura to find you out here and told me where to go. I can't trust anyone else except you right now. Max and Paul won't let me anywhere near their villa because of all the horrible things I've done to them. You're the only one who can help me at this point," He whispered.

Please, Ash… Help me get my Pokemon back."

The fire cackled and the moon hovered in the dark sky. The Pokemon watched in fear of Clemont's life.

"..."

"..."

"Very well," Ash said. Clemont looked up at him with his eyes wide. The roar of the fire lit up his eyes.

"You were electrocuted and horribly poisoned. I suppose that must have effected your sense of reason," Ash said. "I will find your Pokemon and make you apologise to them. Alright?" He said.

Clemont began to cry with happiness.

"I can't thank you enough… Ash."

Ash helped him up and got him to sit by the fire. He offered him some food.

"After everything he's done to you, you still want to help him..." Someone said with a great deal of respect.

"Korrina, be careful!" Clemont cried out. Ash turned his head to face her. His Pokemon followed suit in sync with each other..

Suddenly Ash's eyes widened as Korrina rushed forwards. His Pokemon tried to stop her but she was too quick on her roller skates. Her Lucario made his way in, with his hands held up in peace. Ash's Pokemon halted their attacks but pointed their attacks at him.

Ash got up and tried to block her. Ash was extensively trained in martial arts by the strongest Lucario he knew. However, whereas he learned from only Riolu and Sceptile, Korrina knew all kinds of different counters. She had been training Fighting-Types her whole life, she was an expert in studying their movements. She easily moved his arms aside and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"Been waiting to do that," She said huskily. "I can't believe its' been three years, Mr. Confidence," Korrina teased him.

Ash's eyes were wide and he was terrified. HE WAS DON SATOSHI! Who was this girl to just kiss him like that?

"You're so different, though..." She whispered in his ear. Shudders went down his spine, not unnoticed by Korrina.

He finally got a good look at her. She was tall, taller than him. She had long blonde hair tucked away inside her helmet and wore her white-and-red dress and black shorts. Ash began to sweat as her perfectly formed face was in that proximity to him. She was delicate yet masterful, and was good at what she was doing to him right now.

Ash remembered her confidence, her strength, from three years ago. Fletchinder and Hawlucha (the two of them had turned traitor just months later) fought against her Lucario, whom he could sense at the mouth of the clearing.

"Korrina, you really shouldn't kiss him like that, he's very-"

"Clemont, shut up, I'm talking to Ash. And YOU!" She snapped.

" _What the hell is happening, just a minute ago she kissed me?"_

"Three years ago, after the Indigo League I came to Kanto so that I could find you, only to find out that you had run away! Not even a clue, no footprints, no one knows where you are and most people say they're glad you're gone?"

Ash was filled with a malevolent fury and his Pokemon backed away.

"Don't talk as though you know what I've been through. I've been-"

"NO, LISTEN TO ME!" She yelled with a blazing passion. Ash was actually stopped by someone else's fury!

All of his Pokemon stared in awe. Charizard silently scoffed at him.

Korrina began to speak again.

"Did it ever occur to you that we'd still be here for you? Me, Anabel, Cythnia, Elesa, we ALL care about you… Why did you never come to any of us, we could've protected you!"

"If I had done that you would've been in danger! The news would've destroyed you!"

"I DON'T CARE, ASH! You… YOU were the first boy I ever loved, and you just left!" She sobbed.

Ash suddenly realised she was crying. He felt incredibly guilty all of a sudden.

"Listen…" He murmured. Suddenly he decided what he could do. He pulled her in closer, hoping that it would work. She softly started banging her fists against his body.

"I… I'm sorry, that… That I left. I was so upset, you have no idea, Korrina. They all hurt me so much. How was I supposed to know that you still trusted me? My mom went into shock, even she couldn't protect me. How could I have known that you loved me enough to risk your reputation on me?" Ash whispered.

She looked up at him and stopped hitting him. Her light grey eyes shimmering with tears were beautiful, he realised. She was beautiful. Ash shook his head, what was he thinking? Delia Ketchum didn't raise perverts, as he learned the hard way. He closed his eyes and just hugged her.

"Oh, Ash," She whispered.

"I'm sorry too..."

"What, why?" He asked in shock. Korrina gave him a sad smile. "I saw all those reports on the news. I saw all the times Serena made fun of you, and those other girls too. I know we aren't that close but you're still my friend. You helped Lucario and I unlock the secrets behind Mega Evolution. I love you and I let you down."

They stood there in each other's arms for a moment.

"Well, Ash," She muttered. "Consider yourself lucky."

Suddenly she closed the distance between them and kissed him on the mouth.

"You've got a busy few weeks ahead of you. Hope you're as strong as I am, you'll need the energy." She laughed, called Lucario to her side, and walked away with a sway in her hips. She was in very good shape, especially her lower body, and Ash flushed and tried to look away from her excellent figure. Unfortunately, he realised, the unthinkable was happening. He didn't want to be a pest nor did he want to stare at her body. But she was perfect and he had to wipe some drool off of his mouth.

"Lucario," He asked. "Never knew you were so lonely."

"Carr?"  
"I saw the look you gave that Lucario," He said coolly. His Pokemon flushed.

He yawned. It had been a VERY long day, what with the traitors, the training, the match with Guzma, Korrina and Clemont, Zygarde, and the one thing that stuck true with him: Misty.

"Pidgeot, do me a favour," He asked slowly. The Bird Pokemon descended before him.

"Can you go to the Mirage Kingdom for me? I think you already know why."

Pidgeot grimaced. " **Long journey, this time of night..."** He cooed.

"Just get the Pidgey swarm to do it, I'm tired too." He said tiredly. Pidgeot cooed and smiled. This was easier. He flew into the forest and called on some Pidgey.

Twenty minutes later. Korrina came back with a sleeping bag, and what really caught his attention was the huge grin on her face. His eyes widened.

"What? Did you think I'd just leave?" She said innocently. "I waited for three years to make up for not being able to help you back then, now I'm going to stay with you forever, like it or not."

Ash closed his eyes and gave her a weary smile. "What did I expect? I don't think you'll stay that long once you get to know me..."

She giggled. "No, deep down you're still the Ash I know."

He smiled faintly and his eyes watered a little bit.

Ash went into his bed and Korrina lay her sleeping bag next to it, and started talking about the past three years.

/

In the dead of night, the train station was silent. The lights shone and illuminated the platform in a beautiful way. She could see the wilderness of Kalos in front of her, the sky with its' many hundreds of stars, the moon hovering wonderfully in the sky. It had been many years since she had looked up at the night sky like this.

Misty Waterflower sat at the train station, holding a scrap book in her hands.

It was a red scrap book that had a few scratches on it. The pages were somewhat crumpled but the photos were still in good condition. On the front cover it read, 'Misty's Memories'. No one else in her family had ever seen this notebook. It was filled with all kinds of pictures from her adventures.

It had been several years since she looked at this too.

There was a picture from the day Togepi was born. Brock took this one: she and Ash were there in the shot, cuddling Togepi, who looked happier than Misty had been in the past three years.

The darkness enveloped the sky and the cold air wrapped around the station. Misty began to shiver.

A train ran past the station. She watched it go and the sound sent shudders down her spine.

Snow began to fall from the Winter sky.

Misty turned the page. She smiled again. Each page was worth a million memories. Her throat began to ache a little bit.

Eventually she landed on a page filled with pictures from the Silver Conference. She stared at a picture of Gary and Ash in the first match. Ash's Heracross was giving Gary's Magmar a run for his money. There were pictures of the whole thing, up until the final push between Charizard and Blastoise.

Then she looked at the last entry: the day she and Ash parted ways. After she got home she stuffed it in her drawer and had forgotten about it. She tried to forget him, but she couldn't.

After everything that happened with Damien she wondered if she would have survived in his shoes.

Years later, she still missed Ash. She wondered where he was. He was alive, she knew that much:

Ash Ketchum, dead? Team Rocket couldn't do it, Lawrence III couldn't, The Masked Marauder couldn't: Ash was better than that.

She closed the book and blinked, only to realise she had been crying for a while. She wiped her tears away.

In the distance a speck was visible in front of the moon. She wiped her eyes again to get rid of it. She looked up at the station clock.

Five past eight. Her train would be here any minute to take her away from this wretched, materialistic life. What would she do after? She didn't know. Where was she going? Johto, for now.

This was the end of the old Misty Waterflower. The train sounded in the distance. She was going to search for Ho-Oh. Because wherever Ho-Oh was, she was bound to find Ash. The speck was back again and now she realised it was more than just a funny speck. It accelerated and zoomed above her head. She heard it zipping past and wondered what it was. They turned around and landed on the station platform. A big, white, egg-shaped bird with curly wings, red and blue 'horns' on his head landed in front of her, and on top of it was a certain Electric Mouse Pokemon, who gestured for her to get on.

"Togepi." She smiled. Now she was crying for a whole different reason.

* * *

 **Hope you enjoyed, R & R!**


End file.
